
(IIIOIP OF FINE SUMMER, AUTUMN AND WINTEK PEAK 
Selected and dnrnn >>,/ Mr. L. Berclcmans. 

No. 2, Fulton. 



I>E^R CULTURE. 



A MANUAL 



PROPAGATIOISr, PLAI^Tma, CULTIYATIOK, 

AND MANAGEMEINT 



THE PEAR TREE 



DESCRIPTIONS AND ILLUSTEATIONS OF THE MOST PRODUCTIVE 

OF THE FINER VARIETIES, AND SELECTIONS OF KINDS 

MOST PROFITABLY GROWN FOR MARKET. 



THOS. W. FIELD 



The golden-dropping Pear, the reddening glow 
Upon the cheek of Beauty, and the Peach, 
Hiive common cource and end. I'hc Dust 
We till, we are. The nodding flower, the Elm, 
Atching in cloisters and in v.aulled aisle*, 
A.re man, or beast, or worm, in other forms. 



No marble dumb, or cnmibling tomb shall rear 
'ITieir pale chill walls o'er me. The tree I plan 
Shall monument my dust — iteolf tlie tree. 
Refined in leaf, and fruit, and flower: that when 
The immaterial part puts mtttt/er on 
Again, it is more fit for Heaven, 



Peto |0rli: 



A. MOORE, AGRICULTURAL BOOK PUBLISHER, 

140 FULTON STREET. 
1859. 






t.'V^- 



> ,'6^ 



Liitered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1853. 
• By a. O. MOOEE, 
In tho Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York, 



ajris §0011 i5 i^Hat^b 



TO MY FRIEND 



DK,. ILOXJIS E_ B E li C K: 3VC .A. 3Sr S 



MARK OF AFFECTION AND RESPECT. 



THE AUTHOR. 



PREFACE 



The pleasure with which I have, for several years, 
pursued the labor of collecting and arrangmg the matter 
of this Book, melts away, as I approach the tribimal which 
is to pronounce upon the result of that labor. The Public 
which an authoi* fears most is, after all, very small — it is 
those of his own craft, who will easily discover his failure ; 
and it is precisely that small Public whose favor I am 
most anxious to deserve. Cardinal De Retz once said : 
'•He who is in good repute among Ms own order, can 
not easily be overthrown." 

Itisii'om intelhgent Pomologists that I shall receive 
censure with the most humility, and praise with the most 
gratification ; and it was in hope of earning the latter that 
I have oegun and completed this work. 

There is so little that is really original in any work, 
that the unguarded and jealous critic, in reviewing some 
humble author, is in imminent danger of launchmg his bolt 
at some great and standard authority. When charged, 
by a critic of such rank, with imperfections, I shall 
only be able to answer : " Sir, the best Pomologists 
have contributed the most perfect results of their mvesti- 
gations to this work; and the insensible plagiarism, by 
which another's idea is reproduced in my brain, ought not 
to create prejudice against the idea." So much of what 
is excellent in this work may, by long residence in my 
own bram, seem to have had its origin there, that it would 

(5) 



\ 

vi PREFACE. 

be vain to attempt, at this late hour, a restitution of ideas 
to the proper owners. When known or recollected, the 
authority whose matter has been quoted is noticed in 
the body of the work. 

It requires to be distinctly stated, that the plan of this 
book does not admit of that extensive description of 
varieties which would be desired by an amateur of long 
experience in the cultivation of the Pear. Its design is 
to answer, in a clear and intelligible manner, the oft- 
repeated questions of the novice : " What kinds of Pear 
Trees can I plant most profitably ? — and how shall I treat 
them, to insure a return of the investment ?" 

The Author has indulged no higher ambition than to 
answer these queries satisfactorily — and does not claim the 
ability to instruct those exjoerienced Pomologists, whose 
lives have been spent in patient investigation of the most 
minute phenomena attending the Propagation, the De- 
velopment, and the Fruiting of the Pear Tree. 

In constant communication with Horticulturists, the 
want of a Manual of Pear Culture, so often suggested by 
them, originated in my mind the idea of collating the 
experience of the best cultivators ; and stimulated by my 
own hearty love of the subject, I have executed the work 
now ofiered to the lovers of that noble fruit. 

If it shall result in a more intelligent treatment of the 
beautiful but dumb companions of the Horticulturist, 
and thus obviate much of that disappomtment which has 
flowed from ignorance of the peculiar requirements of 
the Pear Tree, and of the varieties to be selected, the Book 
will have performed the office for which it was written ; 
and the Author wiU not regret his work. 



CONTENTS. 



PART I. 

Preparation of the Soil — Draining — Plowing and Cropping the Ground 
— Trenching — Manuring — Digging Holes — Digging Trees — Soils for 
Pears — Transporting. 



PART II. 

The Seedling — Planting Seed — Obtaining new Seedling Varieties — H)'- 
bridizing — Leaf Blight of SeedUngs — Propagation by Layers and 
Cuttings — Quince Stocks — Cost of preparing Ground and Planting — 
Manures for Nursery Stocks— Methods of Grafting — Budding, 



PART III. 

Selecting Pear Trees from Nursery — Causes of the Failure of Nursery 
Trees — Proper Age for Planting — Pruning and Root Pruning before 
Planting — Replanting the Pear to form Fibrous Roots — Heeling in — 
Treatment of Withered Trees — Planting — Plan of arranging Pear 
Grounds — Cultivation of the Pear Orchard — Mulching — Special 
Manures for the Pear — Invigorating Old Trees — Grating Large 
Trees. 



PART IV. 

Office of the Quince-stock — Causes of the failure of the Pear on the 
Quince — Advantage of the Quince Stock — Rules for Growing the 
Pear on Quince — Double Working. 

( vii ) 



Vlll CONTENTS. 



PART V. 

Pruning. — Advantages of Pyramidal Shape — Approach Grafting — 
Pruning to a Bud — Renewing the Wood of old Dwarfs — Summer 
Pinching — Fruit Spurs, and Treatment — Forms of Training — Rules 
for Pruning — Root Pruning. 



PART VI. 

Diseases of the Pkar, — Winter or Frozen-Sap Blight — Signs of the 
Disease — Insect-Blight — Leaf-Blight. 



PART VII. 

Insects Injurious to the Pear. — Scolytus pyri — Scale Insect— The 
Pear Slug — Caterpillar, Canker, Worm, &c. — Means of destroying. 



PART VIII. 

Varieties. — Conditions which affect the Quality of Fruit — Terms 
relating to Quality— Qualities required for Market Cultivation — Vari- 
eties for Market Cultivation to be grown on Pear Stocks — Varieties 
that may be grown on the Quince. 



PART IX. 

Gathering, Marketing, and Fruit-Rooms. — Soils as aifecting Quality 
of Pears — Thinning Fruit — Gathering — Marketing Pears— Coloring 
and Ripening of Summer and Autumn Pears — Ripening of Winter 
Pears — Fruit Rooms — Mr. Schooley's Plan of Fruit-Room — Cata- 
logue of Native Varieties — Catalogue of Foreign Varieties and 
Synonyms. 



PEAR CULTURE, 



mTRODUCTIOJsr. 

"While revolution and conquest were disturbing the 
equilibrium of the political world, during the last 
twenty years, bringing di-ead and terror in their san- 
guinary train, another revolution was progressing, 
more enduring — as it was productive of happiness, 
instead of misery. 

This was, the revolution in the culture and produc- 
tion of everything which the generous earth yields to 
man's cultivation ; but more particularly manifested 
in the propagation and perfection of fruits. 

Our fathers required the whole of their long lives 
to eat of the fruit of the tree they planted. But by 
the new arboriculture, the youth may pluck fruit 
from the tree he planted when a child. 

In none of the fruits is this peaceful revolution so 
striking as in the culture of the Pear. From the long 
period of twenty or thirty years required for the fruit- 
ing of the tree, we have deducted more than four- 
fifths, and reduced the time to three or four. 

The introduction of the French method of propa- 
gation upon the Quince stock has given such an 



14 INTRODUCTION. 

impetus to the cultivation of the Pear, that the sales 
from a single nursery in this country reach the enorm- 
ous number of half a million trees in one year. It is 
undoubtedly true that the propagation of the Pear on 
the Quince, by its early production of this noble and 
beautiful fruit, will be the source of more unalloyed 
pleasure, and more innocent and healthful gratifica- 
tion, than any discovery in the arts and sciences for 
the last twenty years. 

The origin of this method of propagating the Pear 
mnst not be looked for in very recent times — as trees 
more than a hundred years old, originally upon the 
quince stock, may be found growing in France. The 
history of its introduction into this country would not 
be difficult to trace ; but I have been able only to 
ascertain sufficient to induce me to believe, that Mr, 
Perkins, of Boston, was among the first to introduce 
it, nearly forty years since ; soon after, Marshall P. 
Wilder, of Boston, and Mr, Manning, of Salem ; and 
later still, Mr. Hovet, of Cambridge, commenced the 
cultivation of quince-rooted pear trees, which may be 
seen in those places more than thirty years of age. 

Mr. Mantel, of Astoria, was for some years in 
opposition to Mr. A. J. Downing, the earliest advocate 
of its general cultivation ; but it was not until within 
the last eight or ten years that the planting of the 
trees had become very common. Indeed, it is only 
within a year or two that the theory was broached, 
which governs the whole constitution of the com- 
pound tree, viz. : that the office of the Quince is 
entirely as root, and not as a trunk. 

That we shall arrive at a point of excellence in the 



INTKODUCTION. 16 

propagation of the Pear which will enable us to dis- 
pense even with the Quince in great part, is not 
doubted bj good pomologists. 

In the original introduction of the Pear as a fruit 
into this country, the French Huguenots bore a pro- 
minent part. In preparing for their exile, they doubt- 
less selected the seeds of their best varieties, and 
planted them around their homes in the ISTew World. 
This is evidenced by the multitude of aged trees 
(many of them producing fine varieties) in the im- 
mediate neighborhood of their first settlements, par- 
ticularly on Long Island and at l^ew Pochelle, in 
Michigan and Illinois. 

It is not a little curious to observe how the taste 
and preference for this fruit has survived in the coun- 
tries through which the Huguenots passed in their 
fiight, or where they temporarily sojourned. Belgium 
and Holland have produced more fine varieties, and 
more eminent cultivators, of this fruit than all the rest 
of the world. 

There are many questions relating to the Pear, 
which are still little understood, although discussed 
for a long time by men of talent. Among these are : 
the decline of certain highly-esteemed varieties, which 
can no longer be grown in localities where they 
formerly ranked as the highest and best ; the excel- 
lence of many varieties in particular places, and their 
inferiority when grown in others ; the refusal of 
some varieties to grow upon the Quince stock. 

These, and many other mysteries, which have caused 
as much disappointment and chagrin to the cultivator, 
from his inability to account for them, as from his 



16 INTRODTJCTION. 

failure to obtain the fruit, cannot, from the limited 
character of this work, be discussed at length. The 
Pear has proved, by experience, to be adapted to as 
wide a range of territory in the United States as the 
Apple ; and on the lighter soils of the Atlantic coast, 
to be much more productive. We are beginning to 
learn, too, what varieties are adapted to special local- 
ities and soils ; and amid the great multitude of 
excellent kinds, it will not be difficult to find some 
that will succeed, with ease, in the most unfavorable 
location. 

We are not confined now, as formerly, to a single 
variety, that ripened in August or September, whose 
evanescent excellence vanished in a day or two ; but 
by a skillful selection of varieties, we extend the enjoy- 
ment of this king of fruits over a period of eight 
or nine months — or from August to May. 

A great advance has also been made in the quality 
of the fruit ; for in place of the dry and mealy Sugar- 
Pear, the insipid Jargonelle, and the griping Winter- 
Bell, we have obtained the Flemish Beauty, the 
Duchesse, and the Easter Beurre. 

That we shall continue to make great progress in 
the knowledge of varieties, their propagation and 
improvement, can hardly be doubted, as long as such 
intelligent and enthusiastic men as Downing, Wilder, 
Berckmans, Hovey, Barry, Thomas, and Brinckle, 
continue to cultivate the Pear. To them the pomolo- 
gists of this country owe a large debt of gratitude ; 
and to them I am indebted for much that is valuable 
in this treatise. 



PAET L— PEEPAEATION OF THE SOIL. 

To the tree-planter, the author would say, in the 
commencement of this treatise, as its most important 
and best fortified proposition : that the most complete 
and thorough preparation of the soil is by far the 
most economical and productive. 

Let none, therefore, be deterred from its performance 
by the labor of preparation, as its neglect will per- 
petually remain a source of regret. Defects or 
neglect in this matter can never be entirely remedied 
by any future nursing or manuring. The thorough 
pulverization, deepening, and mixing of the soil before 
planting, will insure a healthy and vigorous growth, 
which the best subsequent system of manuring, trim- 
ming, and cultivation, can never equal. 

The satisfaction and delight that one feels in grow- 
ing a beautiful tree, are enhanced by the knowledge 
of having been the instrument in supplying a soil and 
cultivation intelligently adapted to its perfection. 

The nurseryman is called upon to answer no ques- 
tion oftener than the vexatious query : " How large 
holes shall I dig for planting my trees ?" It can only 
be answered wisely by saying: "If you have one 
hundred trees to plant, dig but one hole for them all— 



18 PKEPAKATION OF THE SOIL. 

in otlier words, dig the whole field as thoroughly as 
you would the space for a single tree. If tree- 
planters would observe this rule, few of them would 
suffer the disappointments which often attend trans- 
planting. So few ]3ersons, however, can find courage 
to invest this amount of labor in the mere planting of 
a tree, that it is a little to be feared that some will be 
disinclined to attempt anything, w^hen so much is 
demanded for perfection. To such it can only be 
said : " Undertake less than you intended, but per- 
form that little in the best manner." 

The processes for the important work of thorough 
preparation of the soil are : first. Draining ; second. 
Plowing and Cropping the Ground; third, Trench- 
ing — fourth. Manuring. 

DRAINING. 

Thorough drainage has become so much a matter 
of faith with intelligent agriculturists, that it is con 
sidered almost heresy to doubt its value or necessity 
in all soils. 

Without questioning the truth of this extreme doc- 
trine, it is sufficient for us to say : that all soils, pos- 
sessing any of the following conditions, must, to 
secure a healthy growth of the pear tree, be first 
thoroughly drained. 

1. Those composed principally of clay. 

2. Those which rest on an impervious subsoil. 

3. Those generally upon which water remains more 
than an hour after rains. 

4. Those in which springs, or springy ground ap- 
pears. 



DRAINING. 19 

5. Those which lie at the base of a hill at some 
distance below the summit. 

6. Those which lie so nearly level that, although 
porous in their character, do not allow the water to 
flow ofi" readily from the surface. 

On any of the varieties of soil mentioned, without 
draining, the pear tree is peculiarly subject to serious 
diseases. The winter or sap blight flnds its most 
numerous victims upon them, while in the worst con- 
ditions of such soils the growth of the tree is slow and 
stunted. In soils at all retentive of water, thorough 
drainage is the only safeguard against these evils, 
and many positions, not suspected of this defect, will 
be found upon examination to be sadly in need of 
this remedy. 

If the plot of ground lies at the base of a hill, or on 
its slope, at some distance below the summit, the 
water percolating through the soil from the higher 
ground will find its way to the surface along some 
saturated strata ; and the least that can be done will 
be, to cut a ditch of from four to five feet in depth 
along the upper line of the ground, thus intercepting 
a part of the descending waters. 

This ditch should be laid with tile, or a rude but 
efi'ective channel made of rubble stone, and in both 
cases should be half filled with the latter, when pro- 
curable ; upon which a thick layer of straw should be 
placed, and the earth pressed firmly in to fill up the 
ditch. 

For more minute directions relating to the condi- 
tions of soil requiring drainage, and the various 



20 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

methods of effecting it, the reader is referred to the 
works upon that subject. It is sufficient for this place 
to say, that there are but few soils that would not 
derive great advantage from thorough under-draining. 

PLOWING AND CROPPING THE GROUND. 

When the planting of an orchard can be anticipated 
for a year or two, the ground should be prepared by 
growing some hoed crop upon it ; as the proper treat- 
ment for a good crop of corn, or potatoes, forms an 
excellent preparation for the growth of trees. By 
this plan, the soil is reduced to a fine tilth, the weeds 
are subdued, and if the crop has been well manured, 
the ground is rich enough for the first year. If the 
soil is clayey, or otherwise retentive of moisture, the 
plowing should be performed in the fall, and left 
in ridges ; but if at all sandy and light, it should be 
left as compact as possible at that time, and not 
plowed until spring. 

The ground should be double plowed, by turning 
a deep furrow, and following in the bottom of that 
furrow either with a subsoil or common plow. If 
there is such a thing possible as stirring the soil for 
eighteen or twenty inches in dej^th, it should by all 
means be accomplished, for this reason : a hole dug in 
a soil, more or less compact, is in effect a cistern. 
This, while it loses capacity, does not lose any of 
its power to retain water, by being filled with loose 
soil, in which a tree is planted. The invigorating 
effect of water upon the roots of plants is probably 
nearly exhausted in the first few moments of its con- 



PLOWING AND CROPPING THE GROUND. 21 

tact with them, and becomes less and less valuable, 
the longer the same particles remain, until it is a cause 
of absolute injury. 

If the hole, therefore, is dug deeper than the sur* 
rounding soil is loosened, the lower part of it will 
retain water for an unhealthy action upon the roots 
planted in it. But if the earth is loosened over the 
whole field, as low as the bottom of the deepest hole, 
the drainage from that hole is perfected, and the 
otherwise stagnant water will flow off, provided an 
outfall from the field is secured. 

An excellent plan for those who are pressed for 
time is, to plow five or six furrows, twice deepened, 
or subsoiled, in the line where the planting of a row 
of trees is intended, and omit the intervening spaces 
until a later period. Let these furrows be run, if 
possible, in the direction of the slope of the ground, 
to act as drains. 

Those horticulturists, however, who intend perform- 
ing their work in the most thorough manner, should 
take this rule as their standard. 

Pulverize the soil of the whole field to a depth 
greater than the longest roots will be planted, and 
this can only be well done by 

TRENCHING. 

As frequently performed, the best results of trench- 
ing are not attained. The true design of its perform- 
ance is, to add to the depth of the soil, without 
destroying its capability. 

When the fertile earth near the surface is thrown 



22 PBEPAKATION OF THE SOIL. 

to the bottom of the trench, and covered ten to twelve 
inches deep with sterile soil, which has never been 
aerated by frequent stirring, in contact with the 
atmosphere ; either a very large quantity of manure 
must be applied, or, with ordinary treatment, some 
years must elapse, before the soil can become fertile, 
or capable of sustaining trees in a healthy condition. 

A trench, two or three feet wide, should be dug to 
the proposed depth, across the end of the ground 
designed for trenching, and the earth deposited on 
the side of the ditch opposite to the space intended 
for treatment. The soil thrown up should now be 
dressed into an easy slope, so that other earth cast 
upon any part of its face will not fall to the bottom 
of the trench, but remain where it is placed. 

A single spade's- width should now be taken from the 
surface soil, and scattered evenly over the sloping 
breast of loose earth, forming a layer of thi-ee or four 
inches in thickness, from the bottom of the trench to 
the top of the bank. Over this should be thrown the 
next spade's-depth of subsoil, forming a somewhat 
thicker layer ; and this again is to be covered with 
part of the adjoining surface-earth; and lastly, over 
this is placed the third spade's-depth of subsoil. The 
bottom of the trench may now be simply loosened by 
the spade, without throwing up the earth, unless it is 
determined to trench deeper than two feet. The 
manure to be used should now be spread evenly, so 
as to form another layer from the top to the bottom 
of the sloping bank^ and. the alternate sti'ata of fertile 
earth, barren subsoils, and manure, continued to the 
end. 



TEENCHING. 23 

The object to be attained is, so thoroughly to mix, 
as well as pulverize, the two soils thrown together, as 
to dilute the good earth with the inert ; but it will be 
perceived, that they have only interchanged positions, 
without commingling. 

The layers of soil and manure declining at an angle 
of about forty-five degrees, and which now exhibit 
their edges at the surface, may be thoroughly inter- 
mingled by one or two deep plowings. It will at 
once be seen, that a soil deepened in this manner will 
demand much more manure than when cultivated to 
the ordinary depth. 

When the trenching of a plot of ground is finished, 
a ditch will remain, which must be filled with the 
earth first thrown out at the other extremity of the 
field. 

The cost of trenching an acre of ground will de- 
pend greatly upon the character of the soil, and the 
depth it is worked. 

The trenching of my own ground may not afford a 
fair criterion, but it will furnish a basis by which calcu- 
lations may approximately be made of the expense. 

The soil was a sandy loam, deepened to an average 
of nearly three feet, with the surface earth of the adja- 
cent streets, and though very free in its composition, 
had been very much hardened by the passage of the 
carts in filling. 

LABOR ON ONE ACRE — TRENCHED THIRTY INCHES DEEP. 

Plowing, one day $3 00 

Seventy-two days' labor, at $1 12 00 

One day carting soil from the first trench to the last one, 2 men 3 00 

Removing stones thrown out 1 00 

$79 00 



24 PKEPAUA'nON OF THE SOIL. 

From some comparison of tlie amount of labor upon 
other grounds, I am convinced that the above would 
prove nearly an average cost, although the trenching 
of heavier and more stony lands would cost as much 
as $100 per acre. "Where the labor of preparing an 
acre at once, appeared too formidable a task, a number 
of amateurs have practiced tlie following plan at my 
recommendation w^tli good results. 

The ground intended for planting is divided into 
four equal parts ; and if the whole plot contains an acre, 
and is a square, each fourth will contain almost 11,000 
superficial feet, and its four sides be each 105 feet in 
length. A more convenient plot, for spacing the trees 
accurately, would be, 100 by 110 feet. Extending these 
lines to 220 feet by 200 feet would inclose but a trifle 
more than an acre. 

One of these quarter-acre plots should be thorougnly 
trenched and manured, to receive all the pear trees 
intended for the entire acre. 'None of these trees need 
be removed before the end of the second year, when 
another plot has been prepared for the reception of 
every alternate tree in each alternate row. At the 
end of the third year, another square having been 
trenched, remove every alternate tree from the rows, 
which at the last removal were untouched. The origi- 
nal square will now contain one half of the whole 
number of trees, or double its quota ; and the removal 
of every alternate complete row to the fourth unoccu- 
pied square, in the fourth year, will place the trees at 
equal distances throughout the entire ground. Some- 
what more than the exact number of trees necessary 
to complete the plan should be planted in the first 



TRENCHING. 25 

year, in order to be able to compensate for the loss of 
any, by substituting trees of equal size and vigor. 

This plan presents advantages which will be more 
largely discussed, but of which the following is a 
synopsis. 

1. It divides the labor into practicable portions which 
do not discourage the planter by their magnitude, and 
the work is better performed than if more were 
demanded at once. 

2. Manure, which would be difficult to obtain in 
sufficiently large quantities, for preparing the whole 
ground well, may be easily procured for one-fourth the 
area. 

3. In the best selected lot of trees, there w^ill, from 
various causes, be some that fail in the first two or 
three years, and if planted in an orchard, would leave 
an unsightly blank — or require the planting of a tree 
that will always break the harmony of the ground, by 
its smaller size. But trees taken from the near supply 
will scarcely lose any vigor, by a careful second trans- 
planting, and not one in a thousand should be lost. 

4. The root-pruning occasioned by removal hasteus 
the bearing of pear-trees, on both pear and quince 
stocks, many years. 

5. All the nursing which young trees especially 
require is brought within a small compass, and the 
labor is materially lessened. The mulching, the hunt 
for insects, and the washing of the trees, are all per- 
formed in a small area, and without the fatiguing labor 
of travelling long distances. The pear tree, above all 
others, is especially fitted for frequent removals, and 

2 



26 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

is, indeed, benefited by them in acquiring capacity 
for early fruiting 

MANURING. 

Undoubtedly, the most thorough preparation for an 
orchard or fruit ground would require the enriching 
of the wliole soil nearly as well as most cultivators 
do the space immediately around the tree. As it is 
intended that the entire body of earth within the 
limits of the fruit ground shall be occupied by the 
roots, it is important that it should contain sufficient 
nourishment for their sustenance. During the first 
few years, it is true, they would be supplied with 
the pabulum they find immediately around the tree, 
and that in a light soil much of the nutriment at 
first supplied would have escaped before the trees 
were fitted by age and growth for its appropriation. 
But for such a soil, the manure should be adopted to 
its peculiar condition, and be composted with a large 
bulk of clay, or swamp-muck, or other organic matter, 
which will enable a hungry soil to long retain the 
fertilizing agencies applied to it. A soil, however, 
Yv^iich has been naturally supplied with but a moderate 
proportion of vegetable mould or clayey loam, will 
not forget for many years the influence of a manure 
which has been deeply deposited. Used in this manner, 
manure will exhibit its influence upon the growth and 
fruiting of the pear tree in a much greater degree than 
in any subsequent application. It not unfrequently 
occurs, that sufficient manure for the whole space of 
ground to be fertilized is not readily obtainable at the 
time of planting. 



MANURE FOR PEAR TREES. 27 

To economize the quantity for present use as much 
as possible, a partial application, that will serve tem- 
porarily, may be made along a line of five or six fur- 
rows in width, thoroughly plowed in, and inter- 
mingled with the soil. After the holes are dug along 
this line, well-rotted manure should be strewn in them, 
and covered with soil. Occasionally, as the hole is 
being filled over the roots, more manure should be 
well pulverized and shaken in, but in all cases, in such 
a manner as to prevent its direct contact with the roots. 
In deepening a soil for any purpose, it must be remem- 
bered, that as the quantity of earth to be enriched is 
greatly increased, a much larger amount of manure 
will be required. If it be desired to increase the 
depth of a soil of nine inches to eighteen, and the 
manure is thoroughly intermixed to that depth, it will 
require more than double the quantity of the latter, 
which would be needed to fertilize the first nine inches 
of depth, as the subsoil is nearly devoid of nutritious 
matter. But, as the escape and loss of this is upward 
into the atmosphere, the deepened soil will retain the 
volatile constituents of manure much longer than a 
shallow one. 

MANURE FOR PEAR-TREES. 

It is a general truth, that the manure that will 
produce a good crop of corn or potatoes will perfect 
a crop of fruit ; but while special manures are to be 
jealously criticised and tested by experiment, still 
something should be learned from the special demands 
of the plant. In the ashes of the pear and apple wood 
or fruit, and in the potato stalk and tuber, a very 



350 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

large amount of potash is found, and the theoretical 
deduction from that fact, that potash or ashes would 
add largely to the growth and fruiting of these varie- 
ties of trees and plants, is found true in practice. 
But in the ashes of wheat, comparatively little potash 
is discoverable, while in its place is seen a large 
amount of phosphates ; and, accordingly, we find the 
various salts, of which phosphoric acid is the base, 
exercise a great influence in increasing the wheat crop. 
Now it would be blindness or mulish obstinacy to 
neglect these facts, and apply manures without atten- 
tion to the special wants of a plant or tree. Farmers 
and gardeners who scout contemptuously the teachings 
of science in regard to manuring, daily practice the 
most scientific and special theories for manuring plants, 
to produce perfect vegetables and flowers. 

Well-rotted stable-manure is without doubt the 
safest, and ordinarily the most convenient, form in 
which nutriment can be conveyed to trees, but it is 
not always attainable in sufficient quantities, nor does 
it alone produce the highest result. Guano is a con- 
venient manure, though temporary in its action, unless 
combined with twenty times its bulk of charcoal-dust, 
plaster, or partially, dried muck. From two ounces to 
half a pound may be applied to each tree at planting ; 
varying in quantity according to the area and depth 
of ground in which it is distributed. But in no case 
should it be placed so that the roots will have less 
than three to six inches of earth, protecting them from 
its caustic influence. Guano afl'ords an admirable 
liquid-dressing for trees (especially when exhibiting a 
languid growth) applied at the rate of an ounce or 



MANURE FOR PEAR TREES. 29 

two in a pailful of water, distributed for a space of 
three or four feet around the tree. 

Of the more concentrated forms of manure, ground 
bones, horn shavings, etc., are decidedly the best, 
especially when dissolved in sulphuric acid. 

When used without this treatment, the bones should 
be a mixture of the finely-ground bone-meal and the 
crushed half-inch bones in equal quantities. The first 
will decay rapidly, and afford immediate nutriment to 
the roots, while the latter will last longer, and yield 
their virtues when the finer bones will be completely 
exhausted. But even these generous and excellent 
manures have a better effect mixed with coarser 
manures, such as stable-litter, horse-dung, swamp- 
muck, and other decomposing organic matter. 

Summer applications of stimulating manures have 
a tendency to produce late succulent growth that does 
not ripen, and which the winter blights or kills down, 
endangering the life of the whole tree with its poisoned 
sap. Late spring applications of manures also stimu- 
late wood-growth to such an extent in midsummer, as 
to induce the tree to throw off the young and half- 
grown fruit. 

In the grounds of the author, during the last season, 
a Bartlett Pear tree, three years from the bud, set 520 
pears. "When the fruit had acquired the size of mus- 
ket-balls, the tree was supplied with guano and super- 
phospliate of lime, dissolved in large quantities of 
water, in order to ascertain how great a number of 
fruits a tree six feet high, and one and a half inches 
in diameter of body at the ground, would \.^€/n. A 
barrel was filled with the solution, and set so as to leak 
slowly about two quarts daily around the roots. 



80 PKEPAEATION OF THE SOIL. 

As the summer advanced, fine thrifty shoots, two 
and three feet in length, covered the tree, but all the 
fruits, except about thirty, fell before ripening : while 
on trees not stimulated by such unnatural nutrition, 
and which made little or no wood-growth, more than 
fifty fine pears were matured. 

'No tree of that size should have borne one-quarter 
of that number, but it was an experiment in which the 
good of individual trees was not regarded. Nature 
usually refuses to perform the double labor of wood- 
growth and large fruit production during the same 
period ; and we cannot, with all our skill, induce her 
to disregard the laws which govern her delicate and 
wondrous processes. 

When rich stimulants are applied to bearing trees 
during the growth of the fruit, the latter is almost 
certain to fall prematurely, as soon as the unusual 
nutrition is exhibited in more thrifty production of 
wood-growth. 

The proper time for the application of such highly 
organized manures as have been mentioned, is in the 
fall or in early spring, during the hibernation of the 
tree. They should always be well and deeply worked 
into the soil. The cost of manuring varies much with 
the locality and price of stable manures. If thoroughly 
manured for the reception of 400 to 800 pear trees — 
an acre should receive from twenty to fifty double 
wagon-loads of stable or compost manures. Thirty- 
five wagon-loads, at two dollars each, would fi± the 
cost of manuring an acre at $70, which would be a 
very moderate sum. 

In the grounds of Prof. Mapes, at Newark, New 



COMPOST. 31 

Jersey, may be seen pear trees of luxuriant growth, 
producing great quantities of the finest fruit, whicli 
have been manured, as he assured me, only with super- 
phosphate of lime. 

COMPOST. 

There is nothing in his range of labors that gives 
the genuine lover of fruit and vegetable growth such 
complete satisfaction as the increase in size and excel- 
lence of his compost-heap. In it the cultivator is 
storing up his chemicals for Nature's laboratory, and 
is thus prepared to furnish to her the elements which 
shall come forth the purest gold. Untold wealth lies 
hidden in its dark and unseemly mass, and at the 
magic touch of the great enchanter, shall burst forth 
in forms of wondrous beauty. In it his imagination 
sees hidden the subtle essences which will ripen the 
golden pear, color the cheek of the melting peach, 
give lustre to the green foliage and beautiful growth 
of the trees on which his care is bestowed ; and thus 
he cheats his senses of the loathsomeness which 
appears to others. 

No single substance or kind of manure contains all 
the virtues or manurial requisites for tree or fruit 
growth ; and a compost which contains all or most of 
the fertilizing agents, will be always found in practice 
to produce tlie finest growth and fruit. 

Excellent results in the growth and fruiting of pear 
trees have been obtained from a compost formed in 
the following manner : Feat or swamp muck, and the 
tough sods of an old headland, were laid down in a 
layer about six inches thick, and twenty-five feet 



32 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

square, and on this a layer of old leather shavings, 
three to four inches, and an inch of refuse lime were 
placed. These layers were repeated until the heap 
was five or six feet in height. To every second layer 
of sods or peat was added one inch of bone-meal, 
amounting to one hundred bushels in the aggregate, 
and twice on the top of the sods a layer of six inches 
of horse manure, that aided in starting the fermenta- 
tion. The whole was encased and topped off with sods. 
A narrow rim was turned upon the edge, forming a 
basin, and five hundred pounds of potash, dissolved 
in water, poured upon tlie heap. If ashes had been 
obtainable, one hundred bushels of unleached, or three 
hundred to five hundred of leached ashes would have 
been applied. The heap contained one hundred cubic 
yards, was turned twice before spreading on the soil, 
and was intended more as a medium of distributing 
the potash, lime, and -^.Te hundred pounds each of 
guano, and superphosphate of lime, afterwards added, 
and for forming with the peat and leather shavings a 
good retainer of ammonia in the soil. 

Let every fruit-raiser, each spring and fall, prepare 
such a compost as the following, and the results of its 
application to trees will astonish and delight him. 

A heap of leaves, leaf or swamp muck, peat, or 
rubbish of any organic matter, should be placed at a 
convenient distance from the house (for no offensive 
smell need be apprehended, if properly treated), to 
receive the wood-ashes, the soapsuds, the kitchen and 
chamber slops. 

Another heap should be formed at the stables, or 
rather, a pit should be dug, and half filled with tho 



DIGGING HOLES. 33 

absorbing materials, in which should be thrown all 
the bones and spoiled meat, the carcases of fowls and 
animals, all the old fish and meat brine, the night- 
soil from the privies, and the liquid manure from the 
stables. Even the coal-ashes should be preserved for 
the small per-cent of alkaline salts they contain ; and 
to the whole, iron should be added in some shape, 
either as cinders from the blacksmith's shop or the 
foundry. 

All this mass is effectually deprived of offensive 
smell, by covering with a fresh sujoply of muck, when- 
ever an escape of nitrogenous matters is perceived. 
The effect of such a compost, applied to fruit-trees, 
is almost startling, in the rapidity and hardiness of 
growth it induces, and in the luscious and highly- 
colored fruit a soil so fertilized will bring forth. 

As the dark and loathsome mass swells in its pro- 
portions, the cultivator (who knows it is but the 
ungraceful form which covers a beautiful soul) sees 
gorgeous flowers and fruits emerging with colors no 
mortal hand could bestow. 

DIGGING HOLES. 

If the soil has been trenched or deeply plowed, the 
digging of holes for ti-ees is a work of comparatively 
small labor, and they need be made but little larger 
than sufficient to accommodate the roots without 
bending or crowding. When, however, the soil has 
not been thus deeply prepared, the holes should be 
dug as deep and as large as the most generous views 
of the planter would dictate, taking care, only, that 
they shall not be a less width than twice the diameter 

2* 



34 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

of the spread roots to be planted in them, nor of a 
less depth than six inches below the bottom of these 
roots. 

When it is intended to prepare the ground only in 
the immediate vicinity of the tree, the holes should 
not be less than four feet in width, by two feet in depth. 
But no plan can be more defective than digging 
deep holes in retentive clayey soils, where water will 
collect without freedom of passage. Filling this hole 
with loose earth does not alter its character for retain- 
ing water, and the roots must soon decay. When it 
is only intended to dig such holes without connecting 
them one with another in the form of a trench, having 
an outlet fall, the planter had far better dig but a 
shallow hole, and prepare himself for very indifferent 
results without more pains than mere hole-digging. 

DIGGING TREES. 

The disappointment and chagrin which the tree- 
planter feels at seeing a sickly tree linger feebly 
through three or four seasons of yellow leaves and 
dwindling branches, would often be averted if some 
person interested in the life and growth of the tree, 
and with skill to direct, were present at its digging. 

It is just at this point that the care of the cultivator 
should begin, for it is too late for skillful management, 
when the tree has been ruined in the digging. 

No disappointment can be more exasperating than 
that experienced by one who waits with feverish 
impatience, year after year, for the fruiting of his trees, 
and sees them struggle, almost like living sentient 
things, to preserve a sickly existence, and ultimately 



DIGGING TREES. 35 

die from the violence and abuse they received iu dis- 
placing them from the nursery. Many a person has 
retired care-worn from business, to the farm he has 
labored half a life-time to obtain the means of purchas- 
ing, only to be driven back into the old mill-track 
again, by disappointment at the result of his labor in 
planting the imperfect, rootless trees sent to him from 
some famous nursery. The nurseryman is usually 
sincerely desirous that his trees should be taken up 
carefully, and arrive in good condition; but petty 
questions arise regarding the expense of increased 
labor in digging or packing carefully, and his reflec- 
tion usually is : that he " guesses they will do pretty 
well." In pressing seasons, too, he is glad to engage 
the most ignorant foreigner who offers ; to be em- 
ployed in digging up a tree, about whose necessities 
the laborer knows no more than he does of the con- 
stitution of the country of which he is, or expects to 
be, a voter. Pat or Heinrich, with no higher idea than 
that he is to take out a good spadeful, sets in his spade 
close to the body of the tree, and by lifting, and pry- 
ing, and twisting, brings out a living thing from the 
earth, svhich although mangled, and torn, and cut, he 
cannot conceive is hurt, because it does not groan. 

It is not only stupidity and ignorance with which 
the purchaser is obliged to contend, but an utter 
indifi"erence on the part of the laborer to the success 
or failure of the tree ; and his desire to exhibit a good 
day's work induces him to hasten that part of his 
labor in which he should exercise most care. 

In all cases, one should begin with the intention of 
hastening no part of the digging of a tree which can 



36 PKEPAKATION OF THE SOIL. 

bo better done with more time. If the tree is more 
tlmn two years okl, commence at a distance not less 
than two feet from tlie body, and increase the dist- 
ance one foot for every inch in thickness of the tree at 
the earth-collar. Set the spade into the gronnd with 
one edge of the upright blade always turned towards 
the tree, and bending back the spade, raise the earth 
witli a shaking motion, that will free it from the roots 
raised by the blade. If the flat side of the blade and 
the face of the digger were turned towards the tree, 
every root would be cut off clean, where the spade 
enters the ground. But by the first method, in addi- 
tion to the two feet of roots in the solid ball, there 
will remain rootlets and fibres to the width of the 
spade. 

In this manner proceed around the tree, with the 
edge of the spade turned towards it, and you will cut 
very few of the roots which extend into the trench. 

Let a sharp cutting spade be provided, which should 
never be used for digging, and with this cut smoothly 
all the roots that extend^ beyond the trench imtil the 
lowest layer of roots is reached, and proceed to dig 
under them, by laying the spade nearly flat, and 
parallel with the ground, and thrusting it under the 
ball to cut the tap-root. Having cleared away the 
loose dirt, shake the tree gently back and forth, until it 
is ascertained where the tree is held by the remaining 
roots ; and then, with a digging-fork, dislodge the 
earth in the ball from them, and only lift it when you 
find that the tree will not strain, or the roots break. 

A gentle shake will now free it tlioroughly from 
oarth without dashing it against the groimd, as most 



DIGGING TREES. 37 

laborers will do unless watched. From this time, the 
sooner it is in the ground the better ; but if replanting 
is delayed, I^ature must be imitated as nearly as pos- 
sible, by hiding the roots from the light and air, in 
the best manner, and as soon as you can. An old rug, 
pieces of matting, wet straw, or, when these are not 
convenient, a light, but comj^lete covering of pulver- 
ized soil, should be thrown over the roots. 

Even in a rainy or cloudy day, injury is received 
by exposure to the chilling atmosphere or light. 

When the soil is sufficiently adhesive, and the trees 
to be planted are near their destination, a ball of earth 
may be left around the roots, and the whole carefully 
lifted in the arms of two men, and set in the hole. 

There is in plants a condition somewhat analogous 
to animal heat, though hardly sufficiently well defined 
to be pronounced vegetable heat. But it is certain 
that the temperature of plants must be maintained 
within a limited range, to preserve their juices from 
destructive change ; and this limit is much re- 
stricted, when the roots are deprived of their natural 
protection, and exposed to chilling atmosphere. It is 
not necessary that the temperature of the air should 
even be lowered to the freezing-point, to accomplish 
great injury to the naked roots, which, while protected 
by earth, could endure an absence of heat indicated 
by thirty degrees below zero. There is something in 
this analogy of condition of plants to living beings 
which, while it excites our wonder, reveals to us how 
little we have yet learned regarding their mysterious 
processes. 

I have seen some of the roots of a pear tree, stand- 



38 PREPAEATION OF THE SOIL. 

ing upon a bank, exposed on one side entirely unpro- 
tected, to a severe winter, witliout injury. The 
requisite condition, or heat being maintained by their 
connection with tlie larger body of roots, which were 
protected in the soil — just as we daily expose a part 
of the person to the cold witli impunity, while the 
naked body would not endure a temperature many 
degrees higher, without perishing. 

There is an eqnal danger in exposure to the opposite 
extreme of temperatui'e, though not so rapid in its 
consequences. A cold bleak wind is far more effective 
in drying up the sap than a moderately warm tem- 
perature, exerted for the same length of time. The 
effects of both extremes of heat and cold are tlie same. 
The sap is inspissated to such a degree, that the 
empty cells close up, and become incapable of again 
exerting the mysterious endosmose action by which 
their functions are employed. Could the lungs of a 
drowned person be once more inflated, the blood would 
commence its flow; or could the blood be induced to 
move by friction, the empty air-cells of the lungs 
would All, and the vital functions of life once more 
commence. Could we All the collapsed sap-vessels of 
the dried tree, we should gain one point in its recovery, 
and in the appropriate place the means for this will 
be discussed. 

SOILS FOR PEAES. 

It is somewhat mortifying to the {)romologist, after 
twenty years of careful study of the laws which 
govern the growth and fruiting of trees, to feel con- 



B0IL6 FOR PEAKS. 



strained to acknowledge, that not only what he has 
learned from others, but much of what he has gathered 
from his own experience, is to be distrusted — perhaps 
unlearned. 

In nothing is he likely to be more disappointed 
than m the soils which analogy and theory would 
induce him to point out as superior. So many influ- 
ences and conditions aifect the results of horticultural 
effort, that disappointment often follows the selection 
of what appear the finest soils. The Newtown Pip- 
pin, on the soil of Long Island, where it originated, 
refuses to yield the exquisite juices and rare perfumes 
wliich distinguish this king of apples ; and from the 
same island which once sent forth sloop-loads of the 
rarest Yergalieu Pears, scarcely a bushel of perfect 
fruit of that variety has been gathered in one season 
for the last fifteen years. JSTeither the richest soil, nor 
the most careful cultivation, any longer produce good 
fruit of these varieties ; while on the rugged farms 
along the Hudson, the l^ewtown Pippin preserves its 
superiority with scarcely an attempt at cultivation 
bestowed upon it; and through the central and north- 
ern counties of 'New York, the Yergalieu continues 
to produce its unrivalled fruit. Most of the other 
varieties of Pear are produced on Long Island and in 
New Jersey in great excellence and abundance. Yari- 
eties of pears are pronounced excellent in the vicinity 
of Boston, which are worthless when raised in other 
localities with equal care in cultivation. These anom- 
alies prevent us from declaring with certainty upon 
the fitness of any soil for all varieties of pears, when 
that particular locality and soil have not been tested 



40 PREPARATION OF TIIE SOIL. 

by experiment. No prudent man will, therefore, plant 
a very large number of trees, of varieties wliicli have 
not been proved in his neighborhood ; at least, not 
without having made careful inquiry regarding those 
that have succeeded or failed. 

Still, general rules that should govern in the choice 
of soils may be given. No soil, however rich, that 
allows water to remain on its surface more than a day 
after it has fallen, or to rise in holes dug not more 
than four feet deep, is fit for plantations of the Pear, 
or, indeed, of any other fruit tree. And no light, thin 
soil, which is not susceptible of deepening, can be 
relied on. 

The soil for the Pear must be dry, and either deep, 
or capable from the nature of its subsoil of deepening 
without destroying its excellence, and of a looseness 
of texture sufiicient to allow the free extension of the 
tender rootlets. 

A peaty or alluvial soil, or one too rich in vegetable 
mould, may induce a luxm'iant and beautiful growth 
in appearance, the succulent shoots of which a rigor- 
ous winter would certainly blight. A free loam 
having a large preponderance of sand, without being 
light, is preferable, as it is easily worked, at times 
when a clayey soil would be nearly a bed of mortar. 
With proper manuring the first would produce a 
stocky, well-ripened, but comparatively short growth, 
while the latter, if in good condition, would induce 
one more vigorous, but frequently unripened. 

A noticeable instance of this difference is seen in 
the fact, that the winter blight of the Pear has never 
been known on the rich, but light soils of New Jersey 



SOILS FOR PEAKS. 41 

and Long Island, which seem peculiarly adapted to 
the growth, productiveness, and longevity of the Fear ; 
while the winter of 1855 destroyed many thousands 
of pear trees on the strong soils of the counties of 
Central Kew York. In the neighborhood of Syracuse, 
this was especially remarkable. 

Nothing can be more fatal to the hopes of the pear 
grower than the selection of his trees from an alluvial 
flat. Blight at some period of their existence is sure 
to manifest itself in a great number of them. Free 
soils, however, it must be granted, are subject to 
balancing evils, in affording shelter to innumerable 
tribes of insect depredators, in fostering the produc- 
tion of equally innumerable varieties of weeds, and 
in more readily parting with moisture and manure. 

A more nearly perfect soil as a base, for the cultiva- 
tion of the Pear, is a somewhat heavy loam, composed 
of three-fourths of coarsely granulated sand, fifteen to 
twenty per cent of clay, and the remamder of vege- 
table matter. This should rest upon a subsoil of sand 
and clay, extending to the depth of three or four feet. 
A bed of gravel should underlie the whole, thus afford- 
ing perfect under- drainage. It would be well for the 
planter, before engaging largely in the business, to 
ascertain the longevity and productiveness of such 
pear trees as are growing in his neighborhood. Many 
of the old Dutch residences of Brooklyn, erected long 
before the Revolution, bearing evidence of the mili- 
tary violence of that period, are surrounded by trees 
older than themselves — trees that have outlived two 
or three generations of houses, each of which may 
have seen as many generations of men pass away. 



42 PREPARATION OF THE SOIL. 

Mr. Downing certainly made a great mistake when, 
in writing a description of the soils suitable for the 
Pear, he pronounced a sandy loam unfitted for the 
permanent growth of the tree. Two or three hours' 
ride through the western end of Long Island would 
have convinced him that there were, in that locality, 
more pear trees, from fifty to one hundred years old, 
than, in all the rest of the United States. The number 
of pear trees, more than forty years old, in King's and 
Queen's counties alone, must be greater than fifty 
thousand. At Greenpoint, L. I., now the Seventeenth 
Ward of Brooklyn, may be seen an orchard of more 
than, one hundred pear trees, which the oldest resi- 
dents remember to have been of full size, and in full 
bearing, in their boyhood. Three of these trees I have 
found to measure respectively nine feet, ten and one- 
half, and eleven feet in circumference. These last 
cannot have been in existence less than one hundred 
and fifty years. 

These were the offspring of seed planted by the 
Dutch and Huguenot exiles, about the time of the 
settlement of the town in 1 648 ; and are certainly good 
evidence of the longevity of the Pear, on compara- 
tively light soils. I do not assert, however, that trees 
planted on thin, sandy soils, especially such as overlie 
an impervious, or a poisonous subsoil,"^ would not be 
liable to blight. On such soils, the roots, compelled 
to keep near the surface, are exposed to the sudden 
and extreme heats of summer, by which their sap is 
60 highly heated as to destroy the more newly-formed 

* As is the case, to a limited extent, in some districts of New Jersey, where the 
potoxide of iron— so injurious to vegetation— prevaila. 



TRAi^spoKTHira. 43 

and tender spongioles and sap- vessels. In such case, 
tlie roots are said to be scalded ; because, at their 
shallow position, thej are unable to obtain sufficient 
moisture for the supply of the leaves, which, by their 
abundant evaporation, lower the temperature of the 
sap — vapor being so perfect a conductor of heat. The 
frozen sap-blight has not, within the memory of man, 
been known to visit the localities above-mentioned, 
except under the circumstances noted relating to 
subsoils. 

TKANSPOETING. 

Trees ought always to be packed, when the distance 
from the nursery to their destination is greater than 
can be accomplished in three or four hours ; and, even 
in the latter case, their roots should be well protected. 
Packing is a labor that most nurserymen would avoid, 
as the charge seldom covers the bare cost of labor and 
material ; but no man who values health and vigor in 
his trees will grudge five times the usual charge, if its 
payment was necessary. Indeed, it ought to be a 
standing rule with nurserymen to charge such a price 
for trees as would cover the cost of packing ; and then 
to pack them would be a matter of course, which the 
mistaken economy of the customer would not induce 
iim to avoid. 

Unless the purchaser has bought only a small num- 
ber of trees, he should order them to be packed in 
boxes, that will endure the rough handling of freight- 
men, and protect them from bending, breaking, and 
exposure. 

If trees are to be removed long distances in tight 



44 PREPARATION OF THE BOIL. 

cases, they should be moderately dry, as if wet, or 
packed with very damp moss, or straw, they are liable 
to grow or to heat, and mould. 

Straw and other coarse material should be distri- 
buted among the tops, and moss among the roots, 
separating not only the layers of trees, but, as far as 
possible, the individual trees and roots from each 
other. When the transit is by water for a long dis- 
tance, the moss should be dried, as sufficient humidity 
will be gathered on the passage ; and the roots should 
be first dipped in a mortar, composed of clay and 
water, by which they will receive a coating of earth, 
which will protect each rootlet from the atmosphere. 



PART ir. — THE SEEDLING, AND PROP A- 
GATION OF VARIETIES. 

THE SEEDLING. 

It is surprising that so little attention has been paid 
to the perfection of the seeds which form the germ 
of the trees we so highly value. Pear seeds are 
peculiarly liable to prove defective, being gathered 
from all sources ; and although they have recently sold 
at prices, varying from one hundred to two hundred 
dollars per bushel, there has not been a strict scrutiny 
as to their quality. The dealer cannot be too severely 
blamed for this, as no standard of excellence has been 
established by the nurserymen. The latter is intent 
only on procuring a large supply of stocks for bud- 
ding, and as the results of inherent weakness in the 
stocks do not always manifest themselves in the nur- 
sery, he entertains but little anxiety about the source 
or defects of the seeds he plants. 

After abundant experience, I am satisfied, that not 
one-half of the pear seeds sown vegetate ; and of those 
that do, not more than one-fourth produce healthy 
stocks, and that of the hundreds of thousands of trees 
sold from the nurseries, not one in five reaches its 
tenth year. 

Carelessness in transportation, ignorance, or indo- 



46 SEEDLINQ PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

lence in planting, and neglect or absolute abuse in 
cultivation, are fatal to thousands ; but the indiffer- 
ence of the seed collector to the condition of health 
in the seed, equals all other causes in destructiveness. 
If the fruit is unripe, the seed must necessarily be 
imperfect, and the perry pomace is usually foiTued 
from fruit, of which but a small portion is perfectly 
ripe. The variety of pear from which seed is to 
be taken is never considered, except by amateurs; 
and as many of our varieties are known to be tender 
in their wood, tardy in their growth, or badly shaped, 
and short-lived, the fruit cracking or rotting at the 
core, the offspring must be more or less corrupted by 
these defects. If allowed to remain only for a short 
time in the pomace or rotten fruit, acetous ferment- 
ation begins ; and the seed commencing to vegetate, 
the germ is injured by tlie acid. 

It must have been noticed that few seedlings make 
their appearance on ground where apples or pears have 
fallen, or been deposited after rotting in the cellar, 
while from the dung of animals fed on them, seed- 
lings start from almost every dropping; in the latter 
instance, all the fermenting acid matter of the pulp 
had been appropriated in the economy of digestion. 

Pear-seeds are injured, not only by being kept 
moist for a long time, but quite as often in the process 
of drying, and from being kept too dry. Large masses 
of moist seeds engender heat, but if the latter are ex- 
posed to constant atmospherical drying, the germ of 
nany of the seeds would become greatly injured. 
?ear-seeds, soon after being cleaned from the pulp, 
hould be separated from each other by some desic- 



TFE SEEDLING. 47 

eating material, such as sand, charcoal dust, &c. 
From experience, we have found, that to obtain 
healthy seedlings for budding or grafting, the seed 
must be selected from healthy and vigorous trees. 

In any part of a pear-growing country, there may 
DC found large, vigorous trees, producing from ten to 
twenty bushels of small, well-shaped, but unmarket- 
able pears, having large and full developed seed — which 
fruit can be purchased for a small sum. These should 
not all be gathered at once, but at three or four periods 
■ — obtaining at each time only those that are ripe or 
nearly so. As fast as they become quite soft, the seeds 
may be pressed out and sifted from the pomace, 
and before becoming quite dry, or indeed they may 
immediately, be mixed with two or three times their 
bulk of the sand and charcoal dust, &c., and after 
drying for a few days be preserved until Spring. 
Much has been said of late about the adaptation of 
varieties to each other ; that is, that certain varieties 
of pear should be grafted upon those having the same 
habits of growth. But upon a large scale this is 
impracticable. 

Some English nurserymen prefer the seeds of the 
Virgalieu, as they are large and full, and Mr. Berck- 
mans has often told me that he has found all varieties 
do well on the Yirgalieu stock. Tliere is little doubt 
that the stocks produced from the seeds of the more 
advanced and refined varieties produce fruit, when 
grafted upon, sooner than in inferior seedlings. But 
there is the serious drawback, that the finer varieties 
are shorter lived, and more subject to disease, than the 
Crab Pear, almost in the ratio of their excellence. 



48 SEEDLmG PROPAGATION OF VAiHETIES. 

From information of the use of a crab pear, in Con- 
necticut, known as the Perry, and from its great vigor, 
hardiness, and longevity, I anticipate excellent results 
from its use as a stock. 

After what has been said, it will be almost unne- 
cessary to state that varieties subject to blight ; or 
fruit from trees that have been injured by it, must 
always be avoided by the seed collector. One cause 
of defect and failure in trees is, the selection of suckers 
for stocks. It has been customary for some nursery- 
men, during the great demand for pear stocks, and 
their consequent scarcity, to employ the vagrant and 
wandering families of negroes to grub up the suckers 
in woods, and around old pear trees, for use in the 
nursery. Of the disadvantages attending the use of 
Buch stocks, it is hardly necessary to speak. 

PLANTING SEED CULTIVATION OF SEEDLINGS. 

The seeds should be sown in October, after frost has 
made its appearance, or in early spring. The former 
is thought by many to be preferable. The conditions 
favorable to their growth, are the same as for the best 
cultivation of trees. The soil should be deep, dry, 
w^cll pulverized, and moderately rich. When grown 
in very rich or damp soils, they make a rank, luxuriant 
growth, but form excellent subjects for that pestilence 
of the Pear tree — the blight. Indeed, of all seedlings, 
not exotic, I think the Pear has generally proved the 
most difficult to grow. If the soil should be poor, the 
plant is stunted and small; and such plants seldom 
attain a vigorous condition, and are entirely unworthy 
of use as stocks for budding. 



CULTIVATION OF SEEDLINGS. 49 

To secure the proper mean requires good and care- 
ful management. The soil should rather be a rich 
mould f»'om an old pasture or meadow, than one re- 
cently manured ; and not largely composed of leaf or 
swamp muck, which would tend to form a succulent 
and unripe growth. When but a few thousand are 
needed — the best plan is to form a bed in some dry or 
well drained spot, in the following manner — for 
10,000 seedlings, dig out a space thirty feet by fifty, 
two feet deep, and return only the surface soil; to 
this add: earth from old headlands, sods from a 
pasture, which have been rotted during the previous 
summer, with three or four loads of leaf or swamp 
muck, which has been one year exposed, and a similar 
quantity of well rotted barn-yard manure. These, 
with a bushel or two of lime, or what is greatly 
preferred, fifty pounds of super-phosphate of lime, 
should be thoroughly intermixed ; and the seed sown 
in rows one foot apart. In this manner, if the season 
should prove to be one of drought, the bed may be 
watered and shaded from the sun during the hottest 
weather. It is important to obtain a large early 
growth ; so that, by the first of August, they should be 
at least a foot to eighteen inches high, and quite stocky 
It would be much better if the seedlings could have 
a greater distance between them ; but this peculiar 
management would be found quite impracticable on a 
large scale. I^ewly-cleared wood land, when dry, and 
cultivated for two years, is favorable to the growth 
of seedlings ; and in all cases, soil which has not before 
grown fruit trees, must be selected, and nearly or (^uite 
as deeply tilled as the bed above described. Unless 



50 SEEDLESrO PEOPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

a good growth is early secured, the plants are liable 
to two serious disadvantages : 

First, if they should continue late in growth, and 
the early frosts overtake them with succulent and un- 
ripened wood, the frozen sap-blight will often destroy 
them, unless amply protected by removal and burial 
in the soil. And, secondly, pear seedlings are fre- 
quently attacked in the hot mid-summer months by 
a sort of rust, that appears in spots on the leaves, 
which soon after ripen, and then the growth ceases. 

The only preventives are, to secure a full growth 
early in the season, or to shade the plants during the 
continuance of the hot weather. 

In -the latter part of July, or early part of August, 
when the growth has become somewhat checked, and 
many of the leaves are ripening, the tap-roots may be 
cut by thrusting a long handled instrument — some- 
what like a spade, but of half the width, thinner 
and quite sharp — in an oblique direction, beneath the 
plants, six to eight inches below the surface. This is 
practiced in England and France much earlier, say 
in the middle of June, but is objectionable on account 
of checking their growth. In the first method, the 
retiring sap will form new fibrous roots, which will 
much assist the growth in another season. 

In the fall, pear seedlings must always be removed, 
and the first grown and best rooted selected for the 
nursery rows, to be budded the next summer. The 
Becond quality also is sometimes planted in the nur- 
sery for budding the second summer; but seedlings of 
the third quality, and sometimes of the second, are, the 
next spring, replanted in the bed — not being sufficiently 



OBTAINING NEW SEEDLING VARIETIES. 61 

vigorous for budding. The winter is often fatal to 
seedlings in the bed, by heaving them out of the ground. 
Thej are therefore packed in sand in the cellar, or are 
buried, top and roots, in close beds, until spring, for 
preservation. 

OBTAINING NEW SEEDLING VARIETIES. 

These are the result of accidental or intentional 
hybridization, or of the natural tendency of the seed to 
change, both in the character of the fruit, and the 
habit of the tree. It may be assumed that, although 
seedlings of pears resemble the parent, yet that no 
two seedlings, of cultivated varieties at least, produce 
fruit exactly alike. 

The fruit of some of the natural seedlings — that is, 
those not produced by complex hybridization, and 
found growing without the aid of art — often reproduce 
their variety by their seed ; or, at least, plants of almost 
perfect similarity. But there is ever a constant ten- 
dency in the most luscious and melting varieties to 
return to the wild state. Yan Mons, of Belgium, who 
expended a life-time in experiments on the variation 
of pear seedlings, held the theory, that " wild pear 
trees, in a state of nature and in their native soils, 
always reproduced seed without perceptible variation ; 
but that, as soon as the original circumstances are 
altered, and the seed is planted in a new climate or 
soil, change commences." His theory is at this time 
familiar to all, and need be but briefly alluded to here. 
The pear selected for its seed must have travelled, 
one step at least, away from the acrid crab. It is 
essential moreover, that it should, not be of the higher 



62 SEEDLING ^PROPAGATION OF VAEIETIE8. 

order, as lie asserted the theory, that at or near the 
sixth generation of successive seedlings, the highest 
point of excellence is reached, and a rapid declension 
begins. I have nowhere seen conlirmatory examples 
of the last portion of his dogma. 

The seeds of the variety being chosen, its fruiting 
was to be accelerated by every means, as the short life 
of man would scarcely suffice for the six generations 
required, when the fruiting of each was extended to 
the natural term of fifteen to twenty years. The seed- 
lings were therefore subjected to root pruning, summer 
pinching, ringing of the bark and twisting of the limbs, 
until the sap retarded in its passage was tortured into 
forming fruit. 

The seeds of the first generation, whose fruit would 
exhibit but slight amelioration, were sown, and the 
fruiting hastened in the same way, and the seeds 
sown successively until the fifth and sixth generations 
were reached. From these he produced a great variety 
of glorious fruits. 

The limits designed for this book will not permit 
even a hint at the extensive discussion this theory has 
elicited, but few can doubt at this day, that the cause 
of the variation in all cases is hybridization through 
the flowers. I have never seen evidence suificient 
to convince me that the continual cultivation of a 
crab pear would ever alter its characteristics in the 
individual tree or its grafts. 

Amateurs do not, however, cultivate or preserve 
every seedling produced. Certain indications govern 
them in their selections in the seed-bed, or soon after 



OBTAINING NEW SEEDLING VAEIETIES. 63 

transplanting, and those only receive great care and 
attention which are of promising appearance. 

If the leaves of a seedling exhibit an excess of down, 
or the branches are very thorny, the probabilities are 
against its proving of sufficient excellence to warrant 
its cultivation. To these marks of inferiority, I have 
added, from my own observation, a peculiar bright, 
deep green, not easily described, a remarkable vigor 
of growth, an unusual quantity of limbs, and a thick 
bushy foliage. The formation of fruit for any other 
purposes than reproduction, or the mere creation of 
seeds, is an unnatural process — or, in other words, is 
produced by artificial means. E"one of our finest 
varieties of pears equal seedlings in their prof usen ess 
of foliage and shoots. In the former, the number of 
shoots is generally less and the growth much stouter, 
more stocky and straight. 

When this is the appearance of the young seedling, 
and the leaf is bright and oleaginous, instead of dull 
and downy, when the petiole of the leaf is long and 
clean, when the color of the wood is more inclining 
to purple or yellow than bright green, and when the 
spurs and spines which appear are blunt, instead of 
long, sharp, and thorn-like, we may reasonably con- 
clude that a new variety of some excellence will be 
produced. 

If the fruit sets well in spring, and continues to grow, 
although frosts and blasting winds have injured other 
fruit, it is a sign of hardiness ; and if more than three 
to six fruits set in a single coronal of flowers, it is a 
fair signal of great productiveness. More than one 
season will be necessary to prove its excellence, as 



64 SEEDLING — PROPAGATION OF VAEIETIES. 

many promising fruits, in their lirst season, have 
important defects, such as rotting at the core, gritti- 
ness, or astringency. Some excellent pears have 
been discarded as outcasts in their iirst fruiting, 
which subsequently proved to be worthy of high rank. 
It has been advised not to hasten the fruiting of seed- 
lings, by budding on the quince or grafting on older 
trees, as it is supposed to change the character of the 
fruits too much for identification in future growth; 
but for these opinions I can see no good reasons. M. 
De Jonge, of Brussels, says : 

" A bud inserted near the ground in a quince stock, 
will produce fruit in the third or fourth year ; and, 
though the wood may acquire a different tinge, yet 
the form of the fruit will remain the same, although 
some varieties may be larger, of richer flavor, and in 
greater abundance. These effects are, however, excep- 
tions, and are attributable to the sort of quince, of 
which there are several varieties, differing as widely in 
their influence on the Pear, as the varieties of the 
wild pear employed for stock." 

The period of time required to prove a new variety 
will exhaust the patience of most persons. Three 
years will be required to judge if the seedling promises 
sufiiciently to encourage its cultivation ; seven years 
more, with pruning and good cultivation, to produce 
fruit; five years more, of successive fruiting, to 
definitively test its quality, and correctly determine its 
worth. 

Fifteen years of extra care and attention are thus 
required to prove a single variety ; and if to this we 
add ten years more, before it can be extensively 



HYBRIDIZING. 55 

known and cultivated, we may see how slowly the 
labors of the pomologist are crowned with success, 
but this period may be abridged one-half by working 
upon the Quince. 

In Mr. Hovey's splendid collection of American 
Seedling Pears are some of remarkable promise. 
Among those termed by Mr. Hovey, Dana's Seed- 
lings, are several which are admitted by such excellent 
judges as Mr. Louis Bekckmans, to possess signs of 
rare goodness. 

Many seedling collections would amply repay the 
labor and cost bestowed upon their cultivation ; while 
in others, labor would be entirely thrown away upon 
thousands of worthless varieties, without securing one 
valuable sort. 

HYBRIDIZING. 

It is often desirable to combine the qualities of two 
pears in a new variety, and this is practicable only 
through their flowers. When the blossoms are about 
to open, inclose the cluster selected with a lace bag, 
and when perfectly expanded, cut away the stamens 
or male organs of the blossoms, and with a small color- 
brush gather the pollen from the anthers of the variety 
with which it is designed to cross, and impregnate 
the pistils left standing in the blossoms — which should 
again be inclosed in the lace bag until the petals fall 
(Figs. 1 and 2). The seeds taken from this fruit, when 
ripened, should be planted with care, and a full detail 
of the double parentage noted. It by no means fol- 
lows that tliese seeds will all produce the same fruit, 
for the original varieties from which they have been 
derived will exercise more or less influence in causing 
them to vary. 



5(5 SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VAKIETIES. 

The stamens when cut away must not be ripe 
enough for their pollen to communicate with and 

Fig. 2. 





Fig. 1 A fruit bud near blossoming. 

Fig. 2. Kepresents a coronal of flowers from a single bud. 

fertilize their own pistils. The pollen nsed for impreg- 
nating must be ripe and powdery, and the stigma of 
the pistil must be damp. It was in this way that Mr. 
Knight produced his Monarch, Dummore, and other 
fine Pears, though the general results of this process 
do not seem to be remarkable. 

Mr. Louis Berckmans, from whom I have freely 
drawn information for this work, has some 30,000 
seedlings of his own propagation and of collections 
from Yan Mons, Esperin, Bivort, Dr. Brinckle, and 
other eminent pomologists, which he has selected by 
various marks and tokens which are eloquent to him 
in prophesying the merits of their fruits. He does 
not, I think, after a long experience, pay much atten- 
tion to artificial hybridization for producing new 
varieties. 

Notwithstanding the splendid results of a systematic 



LEAF-BLIGHT OF SEBDLmGS. 57 

improvement of the Pear, and the noble fruits obtained 
by the gentlemen named, we have been indebted to 
accident, or rather to the vohmtary contributions of 
ISTature, for those pears which rank the highest in 
beauty, flavor, and general excellence. The Duchesse, 
found in a hedge at Angers ; the Seckel, in the woods 
of Pennsylvania ; the Yirgalieu, the Bartlett, and the 
Louise Bonne de Jersey, whose origin is not believed 
to be the subject of design, all confirm this view; 
while we must acknowledge that there is a delicacy 
in the constitution of many of the pears obtained by 
scientific propagation, that renders them inferior to 
the accidental varieties. 

In fact, the superior vigor and hardiness of those 
varieties obtained through accident, alone enabled 
them to survive the neglect and difiiculties under 
which they sprang into existence ; the high-flavored, 
large, and truly splendid varieties produced by scien- 
tific skill and high cultivation, maintain their superi- 
ority only under the conditions in which they were 
nurtured. I have seen the Duchesse d'Angouleme 
growing on quince stock, for twelve years, in a grass 
plot, without attention, where it had been planted 
when twenty years old, and yet producing large, 
melting fruit. 

A Flemish Beauty, Beurre Bosc, or Beurre Diel would 
have succumbed under this treatment long before. 

LEAF-BLIGHT OF SEEDLINGS. 

Leaf-blight is the terror of nurserymen, and when 
it makes its decided appearance, his hope of success 
for the season is at an end. 

3* 



58 SEEDLING — PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

The disease is not necessarily fatal, but when plants 
in the seed-bed are attacked by it, the cultivator will 
almost desire that they had perished outright ; as great 
numbers of them will be checked so prematurely in 
their growth, as to be unable to endure the rigor of 
the next winter. 

On the hrst appearance of the disease, small brown 
spots are seen upon the under side of the leaves of the 
weaker plants in the seed-bed or nursery rows, which 
spread quickly over the whole leaf, and in a few days, 
over the entire collection of plants. Grow^th stops at 
once, the leaves fall, and budding for that season is 
of course prevented. At this period all nostrums and 
chemicals are useless. The fact that this disease pre- 
vails most in old nursery grounds, and indeed is 
almost confined to soils long cultivated, points to the 
necessity of restoring to the soil its original qualities, 
or of j)l anting only in new soils. The disease is doubt- 
less of fungous character, and as its appearance on 
the leaf would indicate, is highly contagious. As 
remarked twenty years since, it is much more pre- 
valent upon the leaves of seedling stocks than upon 
those of budded and fine varieties. Buds set in stocks 
attacked with this pestilence, and which have sufii- 
cient vitality for growth, produce healthy trees, whose 
leaves remain unspotted. This has afl'orded a curious 
subject for speculation among pomologists. 

Mr. Downing supposed this disease to be identical 
with the cracking and cankering of the fruit of some 
varieties. 

Some kinds of pear trees in bearing in my grounds 
are slightly attacked every year, but the disease makes 



PROPAGATION BY LAYERS AND CUTTINGS. 59 

no progress ; the small number of leaves affected drop 
off, and growth commences again, though the fruit 
does not acquire more than half size. The best pre- 
ventives are : to plant in new, deep, and rich soils ; 
to cultivate well and obtain a good, strong growth 
before the first of August. 

An article upon this subject, exhibiting evidence of 
close investigation, and containing suggestions of much 
value, was written for The Horticulturist some years 
since, by Mr. H. E. Hooker, of Rochester. 

PROPAGATION BY LAYERS AND CUTTINGS. 

With the Pear this is always a difficult process, and 
requires nice management. If the theory regarding 
the necessity of affinity between the stock and the 
graft is worthy of attention, propagation by layers is 
important, for nothing can b^ nearer in affinity to a 
variety than the variety itself. Some varieties are 
much more easily propagated in this manner than 
others, but when the proper conditions are observed, 
success is attainable with all. When the leaves are 
ripening in the early part of August, the lower shoots 
of the present year's growth should have the bark 
and sappy wood cut through on the lower side, to 
about one third of the diameter of the shoot. Some- 
times a ring of bark about an eighth of an inch wide 
may be removed entirely around. The shoot is then 
bent down into a hole (care being taken not to break 
it at the cut), and covered with tine soil, tightly 
packed. The retiring sap from the ripened leaves is 
arrested at the incision, and there forms rootlets. I 
tiave succeeded by this method in producing hand- 



60 SEEDLING PBOPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

some trees from about one half of the branches lay- 
ered. When it is desirable to do this somewhat 
extensively, a "stool" may be formed by cutting off 
the tree about a foot above the ground. The next 
season there will be produced a dozen or more thrifty 
shoots from a tree two years old, whicli may all be 
layered as above described. When the shoots are too 
high for this kind of treatment, incisions may be made 
in them, and balls of clay and cow-dung mixed together 
put over the incisions, inclosed with matting, and 
tied. 

QUINCE STOCKS. 

These are always propagated by layers or cuttings. 
Any attempts at propagating by seeds would evidently 
be unsuccessful in producing a uniform variety fitted 
for budding with the Pear. 

The Angers and, latterly, the Paris varieties of the 
Quince, are the only ones in use for this purpose. 
The qualities needed for stocks are : free, rapid 
growth ; a tendency to a large size so as to equal the 
pear trunk, and to root freely from cuttings or layers ; 
to have a cellular and ligneous formation that will fit 
them to unite readily with that of the Pear. In those 
varieties that refuse the Pear, or on which it makes 
an imperfect union, we shall perceive by examining 
the fracture where the pear wood cleaves from the 
Quince, that the adhesion has been produced simply 
by the irregular and grooved surfaces of the wood of 
the bud and the stock, fitting into each other without 
any intermingling of the ligneous fibres of each, 
although the bark of the two species has united to 
form a sheath over the imperfect union. That intei* 



QUINCE STOCKS. 61 

mingling, and continuation of woody Hbres, which 
takes place between a bud and its stock of the same 
species, does not here exist. There is, then, only a 
mechanical adhesion of irregular surfaces, held to- 
gether by a sheath of bark. 

The apparent antipathy of some varieties of the 
Pear to the Quince is, doubtless, owing to the resist- 
ance made by the different texture and cellular form- 
ation of the Quince to the returning sap. 

It is probable that, the cells of the Quince being 
smaller than those of the Pear, the inspissated sap of 
the latter, on its return, has become too rich in albumen 
to pass into them ; but sufficiently accurate micros- 
copic experiments have never been instituted to pro- 
nounce decisively upon the theory. 

The tubes of all woody formations are not continuous, 
but successive — like the joints of bamboo : the upper 
ends being smaller, and fitting into spaces between 
the lower ends of the next higher series. It is com- 
monly known that water will not pass readily through 
the smaller tubes, in which alcohol and ether easily 
flow. From the same cause, probably, the richer juice 
of the Pear will not flow in the smaller tubes of the 
Quince ; and the consequence is, that a swelling out of 
the Pear at that point is formed by the repelled juice 
which, not finding a free passage, produces no ligneous 
fibres or cellular tissue in the Quince. 

PROPAGATION OF THE QUINCE BY LAYERS AND 
CUTTINGS. 

The Quince forms a notable exception to all other 
fruit trees in its ability to form roots readily from any 



62 SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

part of its bark. The propagation of the Angers 
Quince, by layers or cuttings, is manifestly only a con- 
tinuation of the original individual tree. 

The cuttings should he made in the fall or winter — 
not later than January^ since the buds will begin to 
swell in the early, warm days of winter. It is desir- 
able that the buds should remain in a completely dor- 
mant state, so that they can make no demand upon 
the cutting for sap until rootlets have pushed out, and 
given the cutting ability to furnish it without exhaus- 
tion. It 'is not generally considered that roots are 
never added by influences exterior to the plant, but 
are the product of the plant itself. The roots of a 
cutting are formed by the sap contained within itself, 
which, exuding as healing lymph, is changed into roots 
under the peculiar conditions of air, moisture, and 
darkness — which process goes on even in winter, when 
the ground is not frozen. It will be seen, then, that 
those plants formed with large evaporating organs in 
the bark will not readily root, as they part too easily 
with their sap. The close, dense bark of the Quince, 
and the hard rind of the outer wood of the Grape 
peculiarly fit them for this method of propagation ; 
and we consequently find that, out of thousands of 
cuttings planted of the Angers variety, but few fail 
of rooting. 

The cuttings should be planted as early in spring as 
possible, although their vitality is so great as to sur- 
vive almost any treatment, in soils fitted for them. 
During a rather wet June, while trimming some quince 
stocks, preparatory to budding in August, I directed 
the trimmings, then in full leaf, and with some inches 



PROPAGATION OF THE QUINCE. 63 

of new growth, to be planted in the adjoining ground, 
which was so sandy and poor that it had been left 
implanted. Even with these disadvantages, more than 
half took root, and made fair plants. 

The cuttings should be from eight inches to a foot 
long, and planted so as to leave an inch or two of buds 
above the surface of the ground. The soil should be 
rather clayey, a,nd retentive of moisture. When it is 
light, it should be packed firmly around the cuttings 
with the foot — the closer the better. Cuttings of the 
Quince will usually succeed more uniformly in rather 
damp soils, but will not so uniformly grow thrifty 
when transplanted to drier grounds. 

Fig. 8. 




Fig. 8. Mother Stool, and usual Plan of Layering Quince Stocks, 

Quince stalks are, however, produced in much 
greater quantities by layers from permanent planta- 
tions of stools. These are made by planting quince 
roots about four feet apart, in very deep and richly 
manured soils, and cutting back the growth every 
year near the ground. This treatment forces up a 
large number of thrifty shoots, which increase in 
quantity as the stock grows older. 



64 



SEEDLINQ PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 



As usually practiced, in the latter part of August, 
the earth is heaped up, and firmly packed around these 
clusters of shoots or stools, as in Fig. 3. 

The shoots throw out roots immediately, but are not 
usually separated from the stock till the autumn of 
the following year. It has not been customary to 
commence earthing up before the second spring ; but 
we have found it of essential importance to do it 
earlier, so as to secure the benefit of the concentrated 
sap of the fall. 

Fig. 4. 




Fig. 4 Treatment of Stools in the first, second, fourth, and fifth years. 

A much better plan, practiced by Mr. A. S. Fuller, is 
shown at Fig. 4. The stool is planted in a trench, 
which, as the former increases in size, is, at the earthing 
up of each successive crop, filled higher and higher, 
until, at the removal of the fifth crop, the stool is dug 
up, the lower part of the root removed, and the upper 
and more vigorous portion replanted. 



PLAJ^TING STOCKS — SOILS SUITABLE. 65 



PLANTING STOCKS SOILS STJITAELE, ETC. 

It is of the highest importance that only the very 
best rooted plants, either of quince or pear, should be 
planted in the nursery. Mr. Barry, than whom there 
is no higher authority, says, in his excellent work, 
" The Fruit Garden," that " one hundred good, vigor- 
ous stocks are worth five hundred poor ones ;" and 
some of us will live to see the day when customers 
will pay five times more for a perfectly healthy, 
well-grown tree, than they will for a poor, or even 
a medium one." There are a few purchasers now of 
the same opinion. It has been customary to crowd 
the nursery rows with all the plants that promised to 
survive, planting them only eight inches apart, and to 
bud them all, without discrimination, during the fol- 
lowing summer. The consequence has not unfre- 
quently been, a feeble growth from those buds that 
barely survived ; a thrifty growth in the vigorous and 
healthy stocks ; and complete failure in one half of the 
number planted. 

When stocks are strongly rooted, they should be 
planted in the fall — provided the ground is ridged up 
against the rows, to prevent heaving out in the winter. 
If weakly rooted, and no extra care is intended, they 
should be buried in light, dry soil, placing the roots 
thickly together in a trench, and filling it up within 
a few inches of the top. This should be done 
early, in order that the ground may be firmly settled 
by rains, and packed about the roots before it is 
frozen. 



W SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

As early as the condition of the ground will permit, 
the stocks so treated should be planted in nursery 
rows, or bedded out. In bedding out, the weaker 
stocks may be planted thickly, or only two or three 
inches apart, in rows, at a sufficient distance to permit 
plowing between. The soil should be strong and 
deep, and the plants receive thorough cultivation. 
The nursery ground should be deeply worked, and 
well manured a year previous to the planting of the 
stocks, in order that the application of fresh and power- 
ful manures may not induce a succulent and unripe 
growth. 

The method of preparing a plot of ground planted 
recently with stocks, may not be inappropriate to this 
section. The soil was a sandy loam, half an acre of 
it being filled with boulders, varying from the size of 
a paving-stone to those weighing five hundred pounds 
each. As these stones were reached by the plow, 
they were removed by laborers with spades and crow- 
bars, and placed on the surface of the plowed land. 
When a furrow had been cleared of stones, the sub- 
soil plow was drawn by a stout team in the bottom 
of it, loosening the subsoil to the depth of six inches. 
This loosened earth was now thrown out by the 
common plow, and the hard soil again deepened by 
the subsoil plow, until the whole depth of loosened 
soil was from sixteen to eighteen inches. The ground 
was then cross-plowed, harrowed smooth, furrows 
drawn four feet apart, and deepened with a spade. 
Thirty thousand pear stocks were then planted one 
foot apart in these trenches. The whole expense 
for labor was as follows : 



MANURES FOR NURSERY STOCKS. 67 

8 days' labor of team and man, in plowing and subsoiling, at 

$4 $32 00 

3 days' labor of 3 men to loosen and remove rocks and stones, 

at $1 9 00 

1 day's furrowing by double plowing 4 00 

2*7 days' deepening trenches, at $1 2*7 00 

20 days' planting stocks 20 00 

$92 00 

If double the labor had been devoted to deepening 
the soil, it would have been an economic expenditure. 
Great care should be exercised in securing the trees 
in straight lines, as a tree projecting from the row is 
liable to injury from the plow. 

The soil must be dry and rich, and the use of that 
common but vaguely defined term must not be mis- 
understood. Properly expressed, the soil should be 
fertile without having received recent applications 
of strong manures. 

MANURES FOR NURSERY STOCKS. 

To stimulate a vigorous growth early in the season, 
an application of from three hundred to five hundred 
pounds of guano per acre is highly approved. It 
should have been comported for a month previous to 
use with forty times its bulk of well pulverized swamp 
muck, which has been exposed to the frosts of at least 
one winter after digging. This stimulating compost, 
however, should be applied in the Fall, after growth 
has ceased, well distributed, and plowed in on soils 
otherwise in good condition. A strong and stocky 
growth of trees will ensue, and as this energetic and 
volatile manure will have exhausted its power by 
midsummer, the young wood will ripen fully, and 



Bd SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

become hard and firm. A much more perfect mamire 
for the development of young trees is formed from a 
mixture of guano and superphosphate of lime. This 
I prepare each winter, and have found most excellent 
effects from an application of six hundred to one 
thousand pounds per acre in the strong, healthy growth 
and early fruiting of almost every tree to which it is 
applied. 

To prepare this quantity of superphosphate, use 
three hundred pounds of burned bones, or four hun- 
dred pounds of ground, unburned bones dissolved in 
one hundred and iifty pounds of strong sulphuric acid 
diluted with twice its bulk of water, adding one hun- 
dred and fifty pounds of Peruvian Guano ; the whole 
to be thoroughly intermixed. The excess of acid 
changes the volatile carbonate of ammonia in the 
guano to the soluble but non-volatile sulphate, which 
is slower, and not corrosive or injurious in its action 
on plants. The resulting mixture being in a semi- 
fluid state, some absorbing material will be needed to 
act as a divisor. Peat or swamp muck, nearly dry, 
will be the best substance, and may be used in large 
quantities, being itself composed of the ligneous and 
carbonaceous products of the growth of wood. This 
compost may be spread broad-cast, or strewn in fur- 
rows plowed near the rows. The necessity of furnish- 
ing the elements found in this manure may be seen 
at once in the chemical analyses of the Pear, its bark 
and wood. 

On the farm of Prof. Mapp:s, several varieties of 
pears, which with us have not hitherto maintained 
their European reputation, have been produced, of 



ANALYSIS OF THE ASHES OF THE PEAR. 



69 



great excellence, by application of the phosphates. 
The fruits were pronounced by Louis Berckmans, Col. 
Wilder, and others, the finest of their kind ever grown 
in this country. 

A study of the following analysis will show the 
necessity of using potash in addition to the elements 
found in the superphosphate and guano, which may 
be supplied to the soil in the form of crude potash, 
green sand marl, or woodashes. Neither ashes nor 
potash should be mixed directly with guano or stable 
manures, or so placed in the soil as to come imme- 
diately in contact with each other. 

ANALYSIS OF THE ASHES OF THE PEAR. 

One hundred pounds of fruit yield nearly half a pound of ashes, the 
wood and bark much more. 



ASHES OF 


HEART WOOD. 


BARK. 


FRUIT. 


Potash 


27-00 

23-14 
3-00 
0-45 
0-30 

10-40 
0-80 


6-20 

33-36 
9-40 

1-80 
0-40 
3-50 


54-69 
8-52 
7-98 
5-22 
5-69 
1-49 

14-28 
2-00 


Soda 

Lime 


Magnesia 


Sulphuric Acid 


Silicic Acid 


Phosphoric Acid 


Phosphate of Iron 









PREPARATION OF STOCKS FOR PLANTING. 

The small cost of stocks has induced a careless 
method of planting, an<l a more inexcusable neglect 
in preparing them for it. Quince stocks are usually 
taken from the mother plant or stool by a quick j erk, 
which leaves a large ragged end ; as it strips off the 
bark and wood from the stool, for a space at least 
twice the diameter of the stock. At the season when 



70 SEEDLING ^PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

this IS performed, no healing lymph exudes, and of 
course, no rootlets are produced ; besides, the rugged 
wound does not encourage their formation. A raw, 
unhealed end always remains ; and of some thousands 
of pear trees upon quince roots, which I have removed, 
I have never seen fibres put forth, where such a wound 
has been made. The rough corrugated ends will show 
the marks of the rupture made by their violent 
removal from the parent stock. 

The injured roots of stocks should he smoothly cut^ 
and the jagged portio7is cleanly pruned away^ leaving 
a surface^from which fresh rootlets will readily spring. 

In the violent removal of the stock, the bark is 
stripped from nearly all of the fibrous roots ; and if 
they are not removed, a large mass of decaying 
organism must be thrown off, before a healthy vitality 
can commence. 

When the fibres are thick and matted, they should 
be cut back to an inch in length, or they will be 
pressed together in the soil, and decay. Two rootlets 
or fibres never come in contact when growing, and 
this condition should be accurately imitated in 
planting. 

Pear seedlings, which have not been root-pruned in 
the seed-bed, have long tap-roots, which should be 
shortened to six or eight inches. It has been recom- 
mended to lay out the tap-r*ot in a horizontal direc- 
tion ; but the distorted position obstructs the free flow 
of sap ; and the root receiving nutriment from only 
one direction, the tree will be distorted by growing 
mostly on the same side. 

The tops of stalks are frequently allowed to remain ; 



PREPARATION OF STOCKS FOR PLANTING. 



71 



but they should be well pruned, in order to induce a 
new and large-leafed growth to prepare sap that on 
its return will strengthen and unite the bud to the 
stock. When all of the top is allowed to remain, the 
leaves will be small, and but little new wood formed, 



Fig. 5. 



Fig. 6. 



Fig 7. 




Fig. 5. A seedling of one year's growth. 

Fig. 6. The same at two years, after root pruning. 

Fig. 7. The same at two years, with pruning. 

while close pruning would induce large and vigorous 
leaves capable of preparing great quantities of well 
aerated sap. 
The contrast between Figs. 6 and 6 is not too 



72 SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 

strongly pictured, to represent the real advantages 
derived from root and top pruning. The pruning of 
the top should always be done before planting, as the 
roots do not obtain sufficient hold of the soil to pre- 
vent their being disturbed and pulled out by the 
knife. 

INFLUENCE OF THE GRAFT UPON LONGEVITY. 

The increase of the number of trees of a given variety 
has for some years been considered as a simple exten- 
sion of the original tree of that variety. Grafts or 
buds taken from any variety of the Peai', when inserted 
into a pear stock, will entirely change its character- 
istics, and enforce the production of their own variety 
of fruit. Having this power, it is not too much to 
believe, that they have that also of carrying with them 
whatever defect of constitution, or feebleness of vitality, 
may infect the plant, and that trees produced from 
them would be feeble or strong, short or long-lived, in 
proportion to the possession or want of these qualities 
in the original. 

That the defects of a tree must limit the powers of 
all its descendants, is a well known physiological fact. 
But the difl'erent trees of a variety are not descendants 
from an original of that variety, but only parts of it ; 
and starting from this basis, some pomologists have 
asserted, that as all the trees of any variety are but 
branches from the original, and not the product of 
fecundated seed, they must be limited in their exist- 
ance by the life of the original. 

In this theory, however, sufficient allowance is not 
made for the increase of vitality, by alliance with 



INFLUENCE OF THE GRAFT UPON LONGEVITY. 73 

a vigorous stock, which is the product of a seed ; and 
hence possesses the elements of independent life, and 
the power of infusing much of its own principle of 
longevity into the engrafted scions or buds. 

It would be more nearly correct to say, that the 
duration of a variety is limited more or less by that 
of its original, and that any inherent disease in it will 
be continued, in all its buds and grafts, although 
the superior vitality of the stock may mitigate its 
virulence, or protract its dormant period. 

Certainly, a settled conviction is obtaining among 
pomologists, that some of our finest varieties, that have 
been in existence for but the short time of fifty to 
seventy years, have nearly reached the culmination — 
as they can now only be produced, in any degree of 
excellence, by the utmost care. 

The White Doyenne, the Chaumontel, and others, 
are notable instances of the justice of this conviction. 
Some localities still produce fruit of these varieties of 
great beauty and excellence ; but even there, the invis- 
ible hand of disease has stealthily touched their fruits, 
and the plague-spot is appearing upon their golden 
cheeks. 

The influence of the stock upon grafts is very 
marked. The fruits of early summer varieties are 
retarded in their ripening when grafted upon winter 
varieties ; and pears that should keep until Easter, will 
ripen in December, if the tree which produced them 
was grafted upon a summer variety. 

Similarity in growth and color of wood, and in style 
and color of leaf, between stock and graft, is important 

4 



74 SEEDLING ^PROPAGATION OF YAEIETTES. 

in attaining perfection, but impracticable on a large 
scale. 

METHODS OF GRAFflNO. 

Scions for grafting should be of one or two years' 
growth, that have not yet produced fruit-buds. The 
Bhoots selected should be lirm-wooded and stocky, 
with buds close together, as a strong, healthy growth 
is characterized by these marks. 

Grafts taken from the upright shoots near the top 
of the tree are apt to make a vigorous and upright 
growth, but are more tardy in bearing. Taken from 
the lower part of the tree, they produce a more widely- 
spread form, and fruit earlier. 

The trees from which the grafts or buds are taken 
should be healthy, and have produced a vigorous 
growth during the previous season, but such as have 
at any time exhibited symptoms of frozen sap-blight 
should especially be avoided. 

Yarieties which succeed but indiflferently on quince 
stocks, ought not to be propagated by scions from 
trees grown on quince. Indeed, it is a mooted ques- 
tion whether grafts should be taken at all from such 
a source ; but I see no reason for going to this extreme. 

The part of the graft used with the most success, is 
that at the junction of the spring and midsummer 
growth, which is marked by a somewhat fainter annu- 
lar swelling than that at the commencement of the 
spring growth. 

The theory of grafting is, that the newer tissues of 
woody growth unite, when brought into contact, if 
their sap-vessels are not indurated by age. The ter- 
mini of the cellular tubes are capable of exuding 



METHODS OF GRAFTING. 



75 



the albuminoTis deposit of the sap, which unites the 
graft to the new wood of the stock. 

It is not nnfreqiient that thrifty grafts of two or 
three years' growth are blown out of the cleft in the 
stock ; and it will always be found on examination that 
only the bark and extreme rind of sap-wood have 
united, while on the remaining surfaces, woody matter 
has been deposited without adhesion. 

When grafts are procured from a distance, or it is 
necessary to keep them some time before use, they 
should be cut in winter, or early spring, before the 
A^. buds have swollen, and 
packed away in moder- 
ately damp sand. If al 
lowed to be too wet, 
they will decay, and if 
exposed to evaporation, 
they will wither. The graft should 
be in a less advanced 
condition than the 
stock, as during the 
process of adhesion, 
evaporation from the 
bark goes on rapidly 
when the sap in the 
graft is active, and 
death ensues, be- 
cause the supply can not be maintained. 

Grafting of the pear is usually performed only on 
large-sized stocks or upon bear ing trees, except in 

* Fig. 8 represents a brancli, exhibiting wood-buds, in the best condition for s 
graft 
t Fig. 9 represents a branch with fruit-buds, unfit for a graft. 




D. 




76 



SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VAKIETIES. 



nursery stocks, where buds set the previous season 
have failed. On the smaller stocks, of one to four years 
of age, budding is by far the preferable method of 
propagation. 



Fig. 10. 



Fig. 11. 





Fig. 10. Cleft-grafting with single graft. 
Fig. 11. Cleft-grafting with double grafts. 



When the trees are large, only the younger and 
thriftier limbs should be grafted ; but when all the 
branches are old, and covered with rough bark, 
a sufficient number of them should be shortened, 
in order to induce new growths, on which the 
grafting may be performed, as shown in Figs. 11 
oris. 

Thousands of pear trees, almost gigantic in their 
size, in all parts of our country, now bearing only 
the most acrid fruit, could each be made in a few 



METHODS OF GRAFTING. 



77 



years to produce almost a wagon-load of the finest 
pears. 

When it is desirable to graft small stocks, it should 
be done by the process known as whip-grafting, as 
illustrated by Fig. 12. In Fig. 13, the cleft, which 
is a simple split, is exhibited open, as it would be 



Fig. 18. 



Fig. 13. 



atler the insertion of the parts. Cleft-grafting is 
usually performed on stocks of more than half an 
inch in thickness — as shown by Figs. 10 and 11. 

All of these operations can be performed during a 
month or six weeks subsequent to the first swelling 
of the bud, or from the fifteenth of March to the first 
of May. The exposed surfaces should be well covered 



78 SEEDLING ^PROPAaATION OF VARIETIES. 

with grafting-wax. Crown-grafting, as shown in Figs. 
14, 15 and 16, is performed by cutting the graft only- 
Fig. 14. Fig. 15. Fig. 16. 




Figures 14, 15, and 16. Graft and Crown-grafting. 

upon one side, leaving a square shoulder, and pressing 
it down between the bark and the wood. More than 
one graft may be set in a large stock. The cleft in 
the stock, and the exposed surfaces, where the latter 
has been cut, should be well protected by grafting- 
wax. This is commonly made to be used when cold 
by melting three pounds of resin, to which three 
pounds of bees'-wax and two pounds of tallow are 
added. After stirring together, so as to incorporate 
the ingredients, the whole may be poured into a tub 
of cold water, and worked with the hands. 



BUPDING. 1^ 



BUDDING. 

"While pear trees may be propagated with a measui-e 
of success by other methods, it is by bnd- ^^ ^^ ^ 
ding only that they can be raised in large 
numbers with economy and entire success. 
The constitution of the Pear especially 
fits it for this process. 

The firm, tough bark of the stock, and 
the abundant coating of mucus which 
lines the interior of both the bud and 
the stock, enable the operator to efi'ect 
a clean separation of the bark from the 
wood, without injury to the texture of 
either. The ripe mucus sap secures an 
almost immediate union of the parts. In 
growing the Pear upon the Quince ; the 
superiority of this method of propagation 
is still more marked. Mr. E-ivers says : 
"• of twenty grafts set in quince-stocks, it 
not unfrequently happens that nineteen will live, but 
nearly as often that nineteen will die." In my own 
experience with trees grafted upon quince-stock, they 
have proved to separate more easily at the junction 
than trees propagated by budding. It is only the 
bark, and the more recent for-mations of wood, which 
unite when brought into contact; and this union is 
efi'ected by layers of wood, deposited around the 
junction, in the glutinous condition of lymph. 



* Fig. 17, represents a stick of buds, with leaf-stalks for \\m < \]\r\z . 



80 



SEEDLESTG PROPAGATION OF VAEIETIES. 




These facts show that a bud, com- ^^s- is.* 

posed, as it is, only of bark, and of 
alburnum or half-formed wood, pre- 
senting a great surface of fresh material, 
will form a more rapid and complete 
union with the stock than an ordinary 
graft. In this country, where thorough- 
ness in the performance of work is often 
sacrificed to rapidity, it is the general 
custom to leave a portion of wood with- 
in the section of bark connected with 
the bud, as seen in Fig. 18. This arises, 
in part, from the difficulty of separating the wood from 
the bark without disturbing the chit beneath the bud, 
the retaining of which is essential to success in bud- 
ding. This small kernel of coagulated albumen, as 
shown in Fig. 19, is the stored-up material on which 
the bud feeds when quickened into life, and which 
connects its vitality with the wood beneath. To 
remove this deposit would insure the death of the 
bud, or at least allow but a feeble growth. By care- 
lessly taking out the wood from the bud, the chit 
v/ould adhere to it, and thus be displaced — as in 
Fig. 20. 

K the wood be left in the bark, as in Fig. 18, the 
edges of the bark of the bud would unite with the 
stock — the vital circulation being thus established. 
But this piece of wood is a foreign substance, and the 
union will be much more perfect when the whole 
interior surface of the bark of the bud is allowed to 
come in contact with the wood of the stock. From 



♦ Fi^. 18 shows a cut bud with the wood remaining, and figure of bud inserted. 



BUDDING. 



81 



my own experience, I have learned to estimate trees 
produced by this method much more highly than 
those budded in the more common manner. They 
form a stronger union, and resist the pressure of heavy 
winds without cleaving apart at the junction of bud 
and stock. Several methods have been adopted for 
the rapid and efficient removal of the wood from buds, 
but none of them admit the possibility of the inser- 
tion by one man of 1200 to 2000 buds in a single day, 
as is claimed by some persons. 

An admirable plan is shown at Fig. 21. The pro- 
cess, consists in thrusting the tough, but not harsh 

Fig. 19. Fig. 20. . 



Fig. 21. 




Fig. 19. A bud with the eye preserved. 

Fig. 20. A bud with the eye removed. 

Fig. 21. Quill as used in separating wood from the bud. 

edge, of a quill, under the upturned edge of wood, and 
pressing it firmly and gently forward; the chit is 
cut smoothly from the wood, and remains in its 
proper place, attached to the bud. 

The thickened mucous sap which lines the bark, 
and covers the wood, when closely examined, will 

4* 



82 



SEEDLING I»EOPAGATION OF VAKIETIEB. 



exhibit a cellular structure of albuminous materials 
attached to the chit, ready to extend themselves into 
the shoot, which the dormant bud will ultimately form. 



Fig. 22. 




Fig. 22. Stick with bud at A, too high-shouldered for setting. 

The operation of fitting the bud to the stock, after 
each is cut, should be performed almost instant- 
aneously. This is equally necessary to prevent the 
drying, and the chemical change of the exposed sap, 
which almost immediately oxidizes, and turns brown — 
like the flesh and juice of an apple, when cut and ex- 
posed to the air. 

Fig. 23. 




Fig. 23. stick of buds, selected properly. 

For budding, select young, vigorous shoots, of the 
present year's growth, with well-ripened buds, as 
shown at Fig. 23. Cut oflT the leaves, allowing the 
foot-stalks to remain attached to the bud, serving as 
a handle when the bud is fitted into its place in the 
stock. "Reject the upper and unripe buds, selecting 
only the plump, well-ripened ones. Hold the larger 
end towards your body, inserting the knife-blade as 
far above the bud as you intend to leave the bark 
below it, and separate the bud, with a rather deep 



BUDDING. 83 

cut into the wood, as shown at Fig. 24. Hold the 
removed bud by the foot-stalk, and with the quill 
take away the woody portion. If you choose to leave 

Fig, 24. Fig. 25. 




Fig. 24. The proper cut to be made in separating the bud. 
Fig. 25. Quill prepared for separating bud from the wood. 

the wood, pare it down as thin as possible. If you 
are not expert in the manipulation, shield the bud 
from the air by placing it in the mouth, or in a vessel 
of water. Make the incision quickly in the bark of 



84 



SEEDLING PROPAGATION OF VARIETIES. 



the stock, as in Fig. 26 ; raise it from the wood, and 
push in the bud, by the leaf-stalk. You may now 
cut off the bark above the bud, so that it will exactly 
lit the cross incision, and tie the whole gently, but 
iirmly, with strips of bass matting, as at Fig. 27. 
The ties should be loosened in two or three weeks 
after the budding is finished, and entirely removed 
before winter sets in. 



Fig. 26. 



Fig. 27. 





1 



Fig. 26. Bud with wood removed, and stock cut for insertion. 
Fig. 27. Bud inserted and tied. 

Budding is occasionally performed in spring, but 
not to any extent in commercial nurseries ; nor is it 
universally successful, although a convenient process, 
when buds which were inserted the previous summer 
have failed. 

The period for budding the Pear extends from the 
middle of July to the middle of September— the pre- 



I 



BUDDING. 



85 



cise time depending on various local circumstances 
which affect the growth of the tree. The season may 
be a late or early one, or a poor soil may have retarded, 
or a rich one stimulated the growth, so as materially 
to affect the period for budding. Dry summers and 
late spring planting of stocks will also retard the 
operation. The observation of the following points 
will assist in selecting the proper time for budding. 
The first or spring growth of leaves should be fully 
ripened, and the midsummer growth nearly com- 
pleted. At this time, an abundance of ripened or 
richly albuminous sap is thrown between the bark and 
wood, and when both the stock and the bud are in 
this condition, union is readily effected by the harden- 
ing of this sap into tissue. 

The stock should be cut three or 
four inches above the bud, as shown 
at Fig. 28, soon after the leaves start, 
although with very strong and well 
rooted plants, care must be observed 
not to deprive the plant of all its top, 
until the bud has put forth a shoot 
some inches in length. As soon as 
the latter has grown to nearly a foot 
in height, it should, if inclining from 
the perpendicular, be staked and tied. 
Occasionally, the stump of the stock 
will afford sufficient stay for the sup- 
port of the shoot without the use of 
a stake. 



Fig. 28.* 




* Fig. 28 represents the treatment of the budded plant daring the first summer. 



PAKT m.— SELECTmG, PLA:NrTI]SrG, AND 
CULTlYATIOlSr. 

SELECTING PEAR TKEES FROM THE NURSERY. 

Every fruit grower should either select his trees for 
himself, or obtain the services of a competent person. 
There are so many circumstances governing the suc- 
cess of nursery trees, so great a difference in their 
growth, and their roots, as well as in the manner in 
which they are taken from the ground, that the most 
careful attention is necessary to avoid the numerous 
chances of failure. The soil on which the nursery 
trees have grown is a subject of some consequence. 
It should be one well suited to the permanent growth 
and fruiting of the trees. Some nurserymen, in order 
to meet the quickened demand for large and hand- 
some pear trees, stimulate their growth by profuse 
applications of manure. This practice will produce a 
succulent unripened growth, and the trees, when 
planted in an inferior soil, are either killed by winter- 
blight, or languish for several years. 

An instance is narrated of a nursery which was 
advertised as containing immense numbers of pear 
trees, which was said to have been manured at the 
rate of two hundred double wagon loads per acre. 



SELECrrNG PEAB TREES FROM NURSERY. 87 

One large nursery of pear trees, which came under my 
observation, was located upon the bed of a drained 
mill-pond, the water still standing at two or three feet 
below the surface in the ditches, which were dug at 
such distances apart, that the water rose to the sur- 
face between them. On this alluvial soil, an enor- 
mous growth was obtained, but at the expense of the 
healthfulness of the trees. Of some fifteen hundred 
pear trees obtained by the author from this ground, 
nearly half perished by blight during the first year. 
Other nurseries may be seen located on imperfectly 
drained alluvial soils. Pear trees grown on such 
grounds are always deficient in fibrous roots, and con- 
sequently less able to bear transplanting. 

Disappointment, also, often attends the selection of 
trees transplanted from poor and neglected soils, 
particularly those that are light and sandy. The 
plants acquire a stinted habit of growth, from which 
they seldom or never thoroughly recover. 

The purchaser should observe if lice or other para- 
sitic insects have made a lodgment upon the trees, 
and guard against domesticating a pest which it will 
require years to exterminate. Trees infested by them 
in the nursery, are generally stunted, and their growth, 
for a longer or shorter time, retarded. 

In selecting plants for pyramid trees, choose those 
that have branches or branch-spurs within a foot of 
the ground, and fairly distributed along the stem. It 
will be impossible to find trees in any considerable 
number with the branches perfectly arranged, still 
those only should be selected for this purpose which 
approach the standard as nearly as possible. 



88 SELECTING, PLANTDTG, AND CULTIVATION. 

The stem or trunk of a healthy nursery tree will 
usually be twice the diameter near the ground that 
it will be three feet above, and decrease with a regular 
taper towards the top. Stems that are of the same 
size at the collar, and three, or as sometimes happens, 
even five feet above it, have been forced up in their 
growth by crowding in the rows, or by injudicious 
pruning. The height of trees should be a secondary 
object compared to other qualities. The bark should 
be clean, of a lustrous appearance, and free from 
ungainly scars from wounds made by the pruning 
knife. 

Nurserymen are often forced, by the popular prefer- 
ence for tall trees, to prune them contrary to their 
judgment, so as to induce growth in that form : the 
lower part of the tree, deprived of its portion of the 
foliage, remains undeveloped, while the top is increas- 
ing at its expense. 

The purchaser should ascertain, if possible, how old 
the trees are, and how long they have stood in the 
nursery rows without being lifted, or root-pruned; 
for a tree of any kind, and especially a pear tree, 
will not be well provided with fibrous roots within 
the circle dug in taking it up, after standing for three 
or four years, without root-pruning or transplanting ; 
nor will a pear tree form these fibrous roots, on which 
depend its vitality and fruitfulness, unless the stock, 
on which it was budded, has been properly treated 
for their formation. It is the practice in some of the 
French nurseries to cut off the tap-root of pear seed- 
lings when they are three or four inches high, to cause 
the growth of fibrous roots — just as we pinch off the 



CArSES OF THE FAILURE OF NTJESERr TREES. 89 

terminal bud of the yearling shoot, to produce lateral 
branches. When taken from the seed-bed, the plants, 
instead of the single tap-root, ten or twelve inches 
long, will have three or four roots from four to eight 
inches in length. These roots are shortened, and the 
plants set in the nursery rows, when a mass of fibrous 
roots will be produced. K the trees remain in the 
nursery for more than two years, the roots are again 
shortened. 

A healthy pear tree, three or four years old, twice 
transplanted, is worth fifty per cent more than one 
of the same age, though of much greater size, remain- 
ing where it was budded. When the trees are lifted 
in the nursery, observe whether the roots are fibrous, 
and numerous ; and if they are not, but consist of long, 
naked roots, or of two or three straight forks, their 
chances of successful transplanting are very small. 

CAUSES OF THE FAILUEE OF NURSERY TREES. 

The various causes of the failure of trees obtained 
from nurseries would require almost a lifetime to 
investigate, and a volume for their enumeration. A 
few that have fallen under our observation will be 
simply narrated, without discussion. 

1. The too great crowding of the trees in the nurs- 
ery rows, by which a fair supply of roots cannot be 
obtained. 

2. The trees are dug with too little care, and sent 
away with mangled and shortened roots. 

3. Purchasers are not always sufficiently liberal to 
be willing to pay for the best trees, or for matting and 
packing them. 



90 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

4. The trees may be too old, or have stood too long 
without transplanting. 

5. Bad pruning. 

6. The practice of grafting on old stocks, to 
which the new wood has not the power of assimi- 
lating. 

7. The practice of gathering seeds for stocks from 
any and every source, from diseased fruit, and from 
the fruit of diseased trees ; while the seed of small and 
wild pears only are fit for the purpose. 

8. The custom of using suckers from old pear-tree 
roots, which seldom attain a fair size or thrifty 
growth. 

9. The employment of the common and the Por- 
tugal Quinces for stock, instead of the large and rapidly 
growing Angers variety. 

PROPER AGE FOE PLANTING. 

This will depend much on the growth and treat- 
ment in the nursery. I am decidedly of the opinion, 
that when pear trees are to be left to struggle with 
the ordinary difiiculties in an orchard, even when 
they are to have skillful attention and watchful care, 
they should not be planted less than four years old. This 
requirement, however, is not without exceptions. For 
instance : when they are to be planted not farther 
apart than twelve or fifteen feet, and have some of the 
advantages of good nursery treatment — in this case, 
even yearlings may be planted at once in the fruit 
ground ; also, when they are to be planted at greater 
distances, and the grower will not begrudge the 
bestowment of so large a piece of ground to the 



PROPER AGE FOR PLANTING. 91 

cultivation of such small trees. The disadvantages 
of planting small trees are, that they are liable to be 
injm-ed by the plow, and browsed by cattle, accident- 
ally or intentionally admitted, or by the animals used 
in tillage. Perhaps the most formidable objection is, 
that the owner will regret what he deems the waste 
of a valuable piece of ground for so many years ; and 
against his own judgment sow or plant an injurious 
crop among his trees. 

There is, however, a much better method of treat- 
ing young trees, than to subject them to the chance 
of all these evils. If they have not been transplanted 
or root-pruned, select those of two or three years' 
growth, and prepare a piece of ground for the home 
nursery. For this a rich, deep, dry soil should be 
spaded and thoroughly pulverized, to the depth of 
two feet. In it plant the trees in rows four feet dis- 
tant, and three feet apart in the rows. Two hundred 
trees would here occupy a space fifty feet square. 
The roots having been carefully examined, and, as 
before mentioned, the laterals pruned to six or eight 
inches, are spread out horizontally, and gently covered 
with earth. It will be seen that the labor of pinching, 
pruning, and cultivating, will be much less on so small 
a spot, than when the cultivator is obliged to travel 
over the three or four acres, upon which they are ulti- 
mately to be planted. 

K at the end of two years it is still desirable to 
allow them to remain, a sharp spade should be thrust 
down around them, at a distance of fifteen or eighteen 
inches, in order to cut the long straggling roots, and 
thus induce the formation of roots nearer home. This 



92 

will fit tliem for transplanting at an advanced stage 
of growth. In this case, if at the end of two or three 
years they are removed at the proper season, and with 
care, they will suffer scarcely any check. By pursu- 
ing this plan they receive better care, grow faster, 
and are not liable to damage ; and as only good trees 
will in this case be set in the fruit grounds, none of 
those unseemly breaks in the rows, caused by the 
death or injury of a tree, need occur. 

Where, however, older trees, at least once trans- 
planted, can not be obtained, and it is desirable to 
set out the orchard at once, stout two-year-old trees 
are decidedly preferable. Such trees have not stood 
sufficiently long to send their roots beyond a limit, 
whence they can be removed ; and with careful digging, 
removal, and planting, the purchaser need not fear 
a loss of more than two per cent. Quince-rooted 
trees can be removed at any age. When over ten 
years old, and twelve to fifteen feet high, they can be 
transplanted with as much safety as pear trees, grown 
on pear roots, at two years of age. Captain Eichard- 
son, of Brooklyn, who sailed the " Duchess d'Orleans," 
a Havre packet, for many years, was induced by a 
French gentleman at that port to bring home in his 
vessel some large pear trees, grown on quince roots. 

These trees were nearly twenty feet high, with a 
main stem six or eight inches thick at the base, 
branched close to the ground, and each as perfectly 
conical as a Norway Spruce. They had been in bear- 
ing in France for nearly twenty years ; and are now, 
after thirteen years of gi^owth in a new soil, beautiful 
objects in shape and foliage ; and what is more, pro- 



PROPER AGE FOR PLAI^TING. 93 

duce every year large crops of splendid fruit. Of the 
six thus brought three thousand miles, ^ve are still 
living. 

Persons planting large pear trees will, without 
doubt, obtain many advantages which they could not 
expect from smaller ones; yet these are entirely .con- 
ditional upon the treatment the trees have previously 
received. 

To repeat, pear trees upon quince roots, of ten or 
twelve years of age, may be removed with almost 
perfect certainty of success. But to insure safety with 
trees upon pear stocks, whose branches have not been 
shortened-in, they should be either pyramids or half 
standards, so that fibrous roots will have formed near 
the stem ; or they must have been root-pruned, or 
transplanted in the nursery. But in the case of stand- 
ards, whose growth has been unchecked, roots as long 
and numerous as the branches will have formed — which, 
of course cannot be retained in transplanting. Such 
trees can only be safely transplanted when root- 
pruned the previous year, by digging a trench aroimd 
each, and cutting off all the roots which extend into 
the trench. These trenches should be filled with good 
soil, to induce the formation of fibrous roots. 

After much experience in planting large trees, I 
am convinced that the pear is the only species of fruit- 
tree capable of being readily transplanted at a large 
size ; and that when the foregoing directions are com- 
plied with, the pear culturist may obtain an advance 
in the fruiting of his orchard of five or six years. 

Instances of success in the planting and fruiting of 
large trees are numerous. In the spring of 1856, 



94 SELECTING, PLAI^ESTG, AKD CUI.TIYATION. 

Mr. L. Peck, of 'New Haven, removed to his garden a 
Flemish Beauty, twelve years old, which, in the fall of 
1857, bore a bushel of pears that averaged larger than 
Duchesse d'Angouleme, grown on the same grounds. 
A large number of trees of equal size, planted at 
the same time, proved nearly as successful. Mr. Wm. 
Howe, of North Salem, Westchester Co., planted a 
few years since, some large trees from the pear ground 
of Mr. Samuel Parsons, mentioned by Mr. Barry in 
his " Fruit Garden," and in two years obtained from it 
then the finest Yicar and Easter Beurre Pears exhib- 
ited at the Fair of the American Institute for that year. 

SEASON FOK REMOVING AND PLANTING TREES. 

Our country possesses such a varied soil and climate 
that no general rule can be given for the time of 
planting; indeed, the exact period must difi'er with 
almost every season. The removal of trees should 
take place while the vital powers are dormant, or 
nearly so. This is indicated by the ripening, and ulti- 
mately by the fall of the leaf, which occurs, in the 
latitude of N'ew York City, from the middle of Sep- 
tember until the first of l^ovember. From the period 
at which the leaves ripen until they form again in 
April or May, trees may be removed with safety 
whenever the state of the weather will permit, and 
the soil is sufficiently free from frost for their recep- 
tion. Large numbers of trees are removed from nur- 
series, and planted with success, immediately after the 
leaves have been killed by early frost — such as remain 
on the tree having been stripped off. 

The fibrous-rooted quince and root-pruned pear 



SEASON FOR REMOVING AND PLANTING. 96 

trees are liable to be thrown out by the freezings and 
thawings of winter, if they are not planted sufficiently 
early to allow the settling of the soil about the roots 
before the ground freezes. "When planted in autumn 
the trees should receive a heap of earth about their 
trunk and over the roots. If the trees to be planted 
can be obtained at a period in the fall when one may 
reasonably expect fine weather and warm rains to 
assist in settling the earth, before it is frozen, the 
hurry and uncertainty of a late spring should be 
avoided by autumn planting. The season best adapted 
to the transplanting of the Pear is, that short period 
before the commencement of severe frosts when the 
leaves and wood are perfectly ripened, and the for- 
mer easily parts from the tree. At this period, the 
great flow of sap to the leaves has ceased, and every 
cut and bruised rootlet will receive a covering of 
healing tissue, through which, within a few days, root- 
lets will push out. 

During the fall and spring, when the ground is not 
frozen, these radicles are increasing, and are ready to 
commence their office when the first leaves begin to 
put forth. I^ot only do the wounded roots send forth 
fibres, but twigs of the pear-wood which have been 
properly layered in late summer will be well provided 
with spongioles. Trees removed in early autumn, 
with care, will scarcely show any check, and will often 
fruit as well the first season after planting as if they 
had not been disturbed. 

Trees received from France, which have been dug 
when wood and leaf were fully ripened, will, on their 
arrival here, exhibit on their pruned roots, and even 



96 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND OULTrVATION. 

on their broken branches, a thick coating of newly- 
formed tissue, and often many rootlets, an inch or more 
in length. The most skillful English nurserymen and 
fruit cultivators select early autumn for the removal 
of their trees. 

If trees arrive in early spring, one should not hasten 
the planting so much as to be obliged to perform 
the work indifferently, by planting in shallow holes 
or poorly prepared soil. Lay the trees in by the heels, 
covering the roots deeply with loose, fine earth, and 
then plant them at leisure, removing them from the 
trench no faster than they are required. By occasion- 
ally moving the trees heeled-in, the period of planting 
may be delayed until the middle of May. It must 
not be forgotten, that the leaves should be fully ripe, 
and all growth completed, else the evaporation of sap 
through the still active leaves would go on too rapidly 
for the supply afforded by the maimed roots. 

ROOTS OF THE PEAR. 

As the Pear tree advances in age, the difficulty of 
successful removal increases. The reason is not always 
understood by those w^ho seem to consider the roots 
as chiefly valuable for sustaining the tree in an upright 
position, and obtain with the tree the least number 
that will perform this office. Almost all persons be- 
lieve that if, by dint of extra labor, they have secured 
a few long, naked canes of roots, that they have per- 
formed their work admirably; although by careless 
digging, or pulling the roots through the soil, they 
may have destroyed all the hair-like fibres which 
alone give value to the main roots. Tlie nourishment 



PRUNING BEFORE PLANTING. 97 

of trees is received from the soil, through the agency 
of the hair-like rootlets which spread through it 
from the termini of the larger root. JSTo matter how 
many large roots may be attached to the lifted tree, 
its removal will only be well performed when you 
have secured a large quantity of fibrous roots. 

As the tree increases in size, the roots near the body 
exhaust the soil of nutriment, and the absorbents, or 
fibrous spongioles, become hardened by age, and 
incapable of action. New fibres push out from the 
termini of the rootlets into the newer and richer soil, 
and the office of those in the exhausted ground is at 
an end. Nature supports no useless members in her 
economy, and those radicles which have performed 
their ofiice, and become incapable of affording further 
aid, are cast off. 

Thus, year after year, as the roots extend and throw 
off their fibres, the new spongioles supplied are found 
farther and farther from the trunk, and more and more 
labor must be expended in the digging, to obtain a 
sufiicient number of them to sustain the tree in its 
new position. 

No one need expect a tree to flourish, or indeed do 
more than barely survive transplanting, who is care- 
less about the kind of roots with which his trees are 
supplied. 

PRUNING AND ROOT-PRUNING BEFORE PLANTING. 

Although the Pear tree will endure more severe 
pruning, and yield more readily to modifications of 
its form, than other fruit-trees, yet this facility of man- 
agement may cause us to lose sight of the fact, that the 

5 



98 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

restraint of its irregular growth can be better per^ 
formed in its succulent condition by summer pinch- 
ing. But as the form of nursery trees is usually very 
imperfect, and will require severe pruning to reduce 
it to regularity, we should perform this labor in 



Fig. 29. 




such a manner as to need no repetition, and so that 
only the gentler restraints of summer pinching, and 
the pruning of young shoots, will be needed, to 
induce a handsome shape. The great difference 
between the effects of two methods of pruning may 
be seen by reference to the figures. Fig. 30 repre- 
sents a maiden plant or tree of one year's growth 
from the bud, with a mark at A, to indicate the place 
at which it is frequently shortened in the fall pruning. 



PRUNING BEFORE PLANTING. 99 

It should have been shortened in at about half 
its height. The cross lines on Fig. 31 indicate places 
on the limbs where the usual improper pruning 
would be performed. Both of- these Figures ex- 
hibit incorrect modes of shortening, which will in- 
duce a growth that becomes very difficult to shape 
into regularity. To form a pyramid of the tree 
shown at Fig. 30, its branches should be shortened 
to two or three buds, and the young shoots formed from 
these, pinched during the latter part of June, to in- 
duce the lower dormant buds to push out. But the 
method most certain of producing the basis for a well- 
shaped pyramid is the summer pinching of the maiden 
plant, as shown at Fig. 31, which is the form that the 
tree at Fig. 29 would have assumed in autumn, if 
pinched during the preceding July. This last-men- 
tioned tree will now need to be shortened-in much 
below the mark at A, to induce lateral shoots in the 
proper place to form a well-balanced pyramid. 'No 
general rule for pruning trees before planting would 
accurately meet the necessities of each case, but it will 
be safe to recommend, that when branches or branch 
spurs have not formed low down upon the stem, or 
when the tree is not stocky and vigorous, or when 
the roots are much shortened in digging, the tree 
should be cut back one-half of its height. No one 
who prizes ultimate excellence more than the present 
appearance of his trees, but will prune mercilessly all 
the parts that conflict with their perfection of shape. 
In most instances, trees are retarded for two or three 
years by permitting too large a quantity of foliage 
to remain. Too many branches are demanding a mere 



100 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

subsistence, when a fewer number would find nutri- 
ment enough to insure a vigorous growth. 

When the pyramidal form is not desired, it is still 
necessary to preserve the balance between the roots 
and the top of the tree. 

Most horticulturists have stopped here in their in- 
structions relating to planting ; but root-pruning will 
be found fully as important in practice as the proper 
shaping of the top. Wounded roots must not only be 
removed, and the ends of all the cut or broken ones 
smoothly pared, but, in many cases, all the roots may 
be shortened with profit in the growth and fruiting 
of the tree. When large mass s of fibrous roots are 
formed, as on the quince and root-pruned pear stocks, 
they become so matted together as not easily to be 
separated from each other by earth in planting. When 
roots are placed in contact in the soil, they will usu- 
ally become diseased, and lose their power of afifording 
sustenance to the tree. 

Before the tree is planted, the fibres and succulent 
spongioles should be shortened to an inch in length, 
and thinned sufficiently to admit of being readily sep- 
arated by the earth distributed among them. 

It is now the received practice among horticultur- 
ists to plant the pear or quince root so deep as to 
cover the place where the pear-bud was inserted. By 
this method, as the quince stock has been budded at 
least four inches above the ground, we add six inches 
to the depth of the root, plunging into a colder soil 
those rootlets which have been formed near the sur- 
face, and are not adapted to that depth, and thua 



PRUNING BEFORE PLANTING. 101 

violating some of the delicate conditions of vegetable 
life. 

In replanting trees on quince stocks so deep as to 
cover a portion of the pear, it is best to prune oif two 
or three inches of the main root. The recent removal 
of some hundred trees, which had been planted out 
three or four years, gave me an opportunity of exam- 
ining the effect of deep planting. In almost every 
instance where the quince-roots had been buried six 
or eight inches deeper than the natural position, I 
found the lower layer of roots inert, and in many cases 
diseased, and it has now become my practice to remove 
three or four inches of the lower portion of the main 
root with a fine saw. For trees upon the quince stock, 
no fears need be entertained on account of the reduc- 
tion of the roots, as the portion of the stock buried 
will soon be covered with fibres and rootlets. 

After having been once root-pruned and- planted 
out, trees may be removed within three years from 
their root-pruning, without gi'eatly reducing their tops. 
Ordinary nursery trees must be severely pruned in 
their branches, in order to reduce the evaporating 
surface of wood and leaves to a limit that will 
require no more sap than the roots are able to furnish. 
Suppose a tree capable of evaporating two gallons of 
sap each day, through its leaves, is provided with 
roots sufficient to furnish this amount. Now, if the 
tree be removed, and nearly half the roots are muti- 
lated and lost, while all the branches and leaves are 
left entire, it is plainly to be seen that the latter will 
continue to require a full supply of sap, while the 
diminished roots will be incapable of supplying suffi- 



102 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

cient moisture to prevent the tree from dr3dng. It 
must be distinctly kept in mind that the formation of 
roots is in almost exact ratio to the amount of healthy 
branches and foliage, and that every branch has its 
counterpart of root below the surface of the soil. 

REPLANTING THE PEAR TO FORM FIBROUS ROOTS. 

Some of the English, and other foreign nurserymen 
have a scale of prices for trees of the same variety, 
graduated by the number of transplantings. 

The tree is lifted at the end of the second year, the 
roots smoothly trimmed, and^ replanted immediately 
in an adjoining trench. As each successive row is 
removed, the ground which was occupied by it is 
opened for the reception of the next. The benefits 
derived from this process consist in the formation 
of large ■ numbers of librous roots, which push out 
at the extremities of the pruned roots, and the con- 
sequent safety of removal. Two or three transplant- 
ings of the Pear tree will produce a mass of rootlets 
and spongioles that somewhat resembles an enormous 
head of hair. The transplantings occurring at inter- 
vals of two or three years, will occasion at each 
removal more and more surprise at the immense 
mass of roots, and the great change which will have 
taken place in tlieir character. Instead of long 
straggling laterals, stretching away from the trunk 
for several yards, masses of innumerable fibres 
will be found, contained within a compass of three 
or four feet, and instead of the feeble shoots that 
are usually produced after removal, the same season 



HEELING-IN WITHERED TREES. 103 

will often exhibit a vigorous growth, and ripened 
fruit. 

HEELING-IN. 

When trees arrive at an inconvenient time for their 
permanent planting, they should be immediately 
heeled-in. A trench should be dug nearly a foot 
deep, taking care to throw all the earth upon one side, 
to form a bank sloping to the bottom of the ditch. In 
this trench place the roots of the trees close together, 
permitting their bodies to recline against the bank ; 
then sprinkle the earth upon the roots as in planting, 
taking care to leave no spaces for mice to harbor in, 
or which will expose the roots to frost, or the drying 
influence of the atmosphere. If the trees are to 
remain any length of time, and particularly through 
the winter, this is a labor that must not be slighted, 
and the trees should receive nearly as much care as 
in permanent planting. 

When slightly inclined, the trees are more readily 
covered, and can be removed with less injury to their 
roots. If the trees in this position should commence 
growing before it is convenient to plant them, the 
growth may immediately be checked by lifting them 
sufficiently to detach the soft spongioles forming. 

TREATMENT OF WITHERED TREES. 

When the roots of trees that arrive from the nursery 
appear dry, if the branches are not withered, it will 
be sufficient to plunge them for an hour into a thin 
mortar of clay or earth ; but when the trunk and 
branches present a shrunken and withered appear- 
ance, they should be at once laid at length in a shal- 



104 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CTJLTn^ATION. 

low trench, covered lightly with earth, and left from 
three to ten days, according to their condition, until 
the bark is swollen full and plnmp. The wood of 
plants is not a solid structure, but is composed of 
cells or short tubes, separated by woody iibre. These 
cells are the arteries and veins of the plant, in which 
is conveyed the sap which hardens into wood and 
bark, or is developed into fruit and leaf. 

When the tree has become dry, these cells contract 
so much that sap cannot pass through them, and arti- 
licial means, such as are above described, become 
necessary to restore their functions. Trees which it 
is necessary to treat in this manner should be short- 
ened in to a greater extent than is needful in other 
cases, and when planted, the ground should be well 
mulched. Frequent sprinkling and watering of the 
branches and foliage of injured and poorly rooted trees 
is found much more useful than the profuse pouring of 
water upon the roots — 'by preventing the evaporation 
through the leaves from exhausting the supply of sap 

PLANTING. 

Many persons imagine it necessary to choose a wet 
day for planting trees. On a light sandy loam, little 
injury would result, perhaps, from the selection of 
such a day, but for planting upon a strong loam, or 
clayey soil, no choice could be more injudicious. 

The earth falls in mortar or in clods upon the roots, 
pressing them down into close contact, instead of 
being distributed between them, and thus separating 
each rootlet from its fellow with intervening earth 
that would soon be filled with fibres. 



PLAINING. 105 

The ground, even of a light soil, is trodden hard 
when wet, and is thus left in the most unfit condition 
for future cultivation. Contrary to the usual belief, 
the day selected ought not only to be dry, but at 
least two or three days should have elapsed after the 
falling of rain, before planting is commenced. The 
soil being now prepared, and the holes dug according 
to the directions given, let one person hold the tree in 
an upright condition, and another with a shaking 
motion of the shovel sift the mould among the roots, 
ooccasionally stopping to lift those roots that have 
fallen below their natural position. The necessity of 
attending carefully to this latter direction will be 
seen from the fact that the roots of trees, especially 
when fibrous, are thrown out in layers so as to reach 
different strata of earth, and that no two roots can be 
found growing in contact. Consequently, when the 
roots are pressed down in a mass, the energies of the 
tree must be greatly crippled, and its growth retarded. 
When the roots have been partially covered by shak- 
ing in the pulverized earth, the person holding the 
tree may, by a slight tremulous motion, sift the finer 
particles among the fibrous roots, and thus separate 
them more completely ; but carefully avoiding to lift 
the tree so as to alter its level, or tear its roots. To 
prevent the formation of a hollow beneatli the forked 
roots of a tree, a mound of firm earth should be formed 
in the hole upon which the tree is to be planted, and 
care observed to press the earth into any space that 
may remain. 

K the tree is found to be planted too deeply, it 
must not be lifted, with all the weight of soil upon it, 

5* 



106 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

until it has reached its proper level (as this careless 
plan would displace all the roots, and entirely ruin the 
more delicate ones) but the earth should be carefully 
removed, and the tree reset. The hole should be filled, 
as far as possible, with the top soil ; and to obtain a 
sufficiency for this purpose, the soil should be removed 
from the adjoining surface, and intermingled with a 
portion of the subsoil, to fill the hole. 

If the eai-th immediately around the roots of a tree 
is poor, the most skillful cultivator cannot remedy 
the defect without removal of the tree ; but when an 
infertile soil is upon the surface, any ordinary laborer 
can improve it by manuring. 

The loose earth with which holes are filled in plant- 
ing trees, must not be pressed upon the roots by tread- 
ing, or other means, under the j^retext of fixing the 
tree firmly in its place. The more loose and porous the 
soil is left, in filling the hole, the more perfectly will 
the next rains wash it among and around the roots, 
and solidify the ground. If convenient, a few pails 
of water would imperfectly imitate the eflfect of rain, 
and prove temporarily beneficial. To prevent the 
displacement of the tree by heavy winds, and the con- 
sequent racking and fracture of the roots, a mound of 
earth should be raised against the body, to remain 
through the winter, and for a month or more in spring. 

PLAIT OF AKEANGING PEAR GROUNDS. 

By training all the trees of a plantation, whether on 
Quince or Pear roots, as pyramids or low standards, 
but little care need be observed to preserve greatei' 
distances between those on Pear stocks. The best 



PLAN OF ARRANGING PEAR GROUNDS. 



107 



Fig. 32. 
100£eet 



arrangement is the quincunx, as it affords a larger 
space to trees planted in this manner, than set oppo- 
site each other. 
By this plan, the 
trees will be ar- 
ranged in rows 
in live different 
directions, from 
which fact the 
method takes its 
name. In plant- 
ing, the ground 
should be laid 
off by a plow in 
furrows, at the ^ 
proper distance. ^§ 
A furrow should ^ 
then be plowed 
at right angles 
to the former, at 
one end of the 
plot, where the 
outside row of 
trees is to be 
planted, as in 
Fig. 32. The dis- 
tance at which 
the next paral- 
lel furrow is ^____^_^^ 
to be plowed, ^^^^''^ 

should be one half of that at which the trees 
are to be planted in the rows. That is, if the 
rows are ten feet from each other, and the treee are to 




108 SELEcrriNG-, PLAjirriNG, ajsb cultivation. 

be planted at ten feet apart in the rows, the cross fur- 
rows must be plowed five feet distant from each other. 

Every alternate crossing will indicate the position 
of a tree, omitting the lirst crossing in each alternate 
row. If the trees are planted quite up to the bound- 
ary line, this plan would give us five rows of twenty- 
two, and six rows of twenty-three trees each, or an 
aggregate of 248 trees upon a plot of the size as shown 
at Fig. 32, which represents half an acre of ground— 
although the addition to one side of this of an equal 
plot of ground would be capable of containing only 
225 trees. K trained to branch near the ground, 
and properly pruned, 473 trees may be grown and 
fruited upon an acre, for many years, without crowding. 
By this method — improperly termed quincunx — each 
tree would stand ten feet from its neighbors in the 
same row, and a trifle over twelve feet from the nearest 
in the adjacent rows. 

The true quincunx arrangement is formed by plac- 
ing the trees at equal distances from each other in 
every direction, and when the distance proposed is ten 
feet, it will be necessary that the rows should be laid 
out at eight feet eight inches apart, and the trees 
planted ten feet apart in the rows, as represented in 
Fig. 32. By this arrangement, each tree occupies the 
centre of a hexagon of equal sides, and is consequently 
equidistant from all the adjacent trees — exactly ten 
feet separating each tree in the plot from its neighbors. 
By this method, 563 trees may be planted on an acre, 
as we gain space for three additional rows. 

For a peai- garden, I have found ten feet to be an 
ample distance ; and for planting an acre, would recom- 



PLAN OF ARRANGING PEAR GROUNDS. 109 

mend that the eleven trees at each end of the plot, 
and one entire row of twenty-three trees, should be 
omitted in planting, and that the space occupied by 
the row be divided on each side of the plot, so as to 
leave a clear unoccupied space of five feet around it. 
Five hundred trees will thus find ample room upon an 
acre ; and may yield their fruit to one generation before 
they will give evidence of being crowded. 

A plan very frequently adopted is, the planting in 
borders on either side of a path and around garden 
squares. The borders should be deeply tilled and 
rich, and the trees may be planted quite closely. 

A beautiful efi'ect may be produced by preparing, 
on each side of a path, a border of not less than 
twenty-five feet wide, in which are to be planted fruit- 
trees, in a form to produce the effect of the sides of 
an amphitheatre. In the side of the border farthest 
from the path, are to be planted the most vigorous 
varieties of pear trees, on their own roots, l^ext, and 
at a distance of not more six feet, should be planted 
a row of less thrifty kinds, on quince roots. Each 
succeeding row should be composed of varieties less 
vigorous in their growth than the preceding, until 
the front row is reached, which should be planted with 
dwarf apples. 

The outside row may be planted with the Vicar of 
Winkfield and St. Michael Archange — the second with 
Bartlett on pear, and Urbaniste on quince stocks, 
the third with Duchesse and Louise Bonne de Jersey 
on quince, and the fourth with Flemish Beauty and 
Winter l^elis on quince. 



110 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 



DEPTH OF PLANTING. 

"No part of fruit culture has attracted more attention, 
and elicited more speculation, than this. In one point 
all are agreed, that, with few exceptions, fruit-trees 
should never be planted deeper than they grew in the 
nursery. The part of the tree called the collar, where 
the bark of the roots meets that of the trunk, the natural 
position of which is a little below the surface of the 
ground, marks the limit to which it should be usually 
buried. Although the earth may be temporarily 
heaped higher than this, around a tree just planted, 
yet it should generally be removed soon after growth 
commences. 

A Mr. Comstock created some sensation, not long 
since, by his claim to have discovered the grand secret 
of successful fruit culture. He acquired some money, 
and a sort of fame, by lectures upon what he termed 
the science of Terra-culture — or, cultivation with- 
out disturbing the rootlets which fill the soil. His 
theory was, that a tree planted below its natural 
depth threw out a new stratum of roots, by which the 
equilibrium was lost, and it became thenceforth a 
maimed tree, incapable of producing its maximum 
of fruit. But his theory was only a repetition of 
the old story of human error — a part taken for the 
whole. 

In planting in a dry and deeply pulverized soil, 
the pear tree may with safety be placed lower than 
its original position. According to my own expe- 
rience, it is quite essential to success, after removing 
a pear tree from a heavy to a light soil, that it be 



DEPTH OF PLANTING. Ill 

planted one or two inches deeper than originally 
grown. 

But in wet or compact soils, or on those composed 
in great part of organic matter, like the Western prai- 
ries, a preferable plan is, to ridge np the soil six or 
eight inches high, by backfurr owing, and in the em- 
bankment plant the trees. Some persons have prac- 
ticed with success, on wet or clay soils, a plan of plant- 
ing on the surface of the ground, and covering the 
roots, by heaping up a monnd of earth much wider 
than the space occupied by them. This may serve 
temporarily ; but the plan is a mere shift to escape the 
labor and expense of draining, and permanently im- 
proving the soil. 

But to the rule generally established for the depth 
of planting, there are two notable exceptions. First, 
while the Peach, Cherry, Plum, and Apple, cannot be 
planted much lower than the collar without injury, the 
Quince, the Grape, and the Pear on quince roots, are, 
from the structure of their bark and wood, capable of 
adapting themselves to a depth of planting much lower. 
Second, when the soils have been deeply trenched or 
subsoiled, their level is much higher than in their 
former state, and in compacting, they will sink away 
from the roots planted in them, leaving the upper 
ones exposed, unless the trees should be planted 
deeper than grown in the nursery. Yery fibrous- 
rooted trees obtain a better hold of the soil, and are 
carried down with it. In planting grounds deeply 
prepared with pear trees, I have found those on the 
quiiice stock, by their fibrous roots, able to main- 
tain their relative position in the soil, while in its 



112 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

compacting, the trees on pear stock alternating with 
the others, would be left two or three inches out 
of the ground. 



CULTIVATION OF THE PEAH OKCHAED. 

A reputation for bad management, and perhaps a 
residence in a lunatic asylum, could not be more readily 
obtained by a fai-mer, than to persistently practice the 
growing of weeds and grass in his potato and corn- 
fields, seeding down to grass the garden which he had 
just planted with vegetables, or turning his cattle to 
graze in his ripening grain. 

Yet, scarcely one in a hundred farmers but per- 
forms every one of these insane practices upon his 
orchard and fruit grounds. Until within a very few 
years, the orchard was quite as much relied upon for 
pasturage and grain crops as the meadow and fallow. 
Hundreds of thousands of trees have been planted in 
ground cropped year after year with corn or wheat, 
that have made no more growth in five years than 
might have been produced in two. Nothing could be 
less economical, even where only profit was desired. 
'No reason can be given why a field of corn and pota- 
toes should be cultivated with plow and hoe, that 
is not an equally powerful argument in favor of the 
same treatment of young trees ; and there are many 
reasons why the latter will not succeed with grass and 
grain, when they would grow luxuriantly with root 
crops. One of the principal arguments in favor of the 
latter practice may ST:5ggest others to tliinking observ- 
ers. Vegetables grown for their roots derive the far 
greater portion of theii' nutriment from the atmosphere, 



CULTIVATION OF THE PEAR ORCHAJiD. 113 

through tlieir broad or luxuriant foliage, while grasses 
and gi-ains take more largely from the soil. The latter 
plants not only permeate the soil more completely 
with their roots, but by their taller and denser growth, 
prevent that free contact of the lower branches and 
leaves with the atmosphere necessary for the absorp- 
tion of nutritious gases, and the deposit of invigorat- 
ing dews. 

The experience of the best horticulturists confirms 
the opinion that tlie cultivation of the ground, equal 
to that usually bestowed upon corn and potatoes, 
coupled with the avoidance of any grain crop, will 
hasten the maturity and fruiting of the Pear, from six 
to ten years. If the ground is root-cropped, the cul- 
tivation for the roots will afford an excellent tillage 
for the trees, which, for a few years, will but little 
interfere with the growth of the former. The plowing 
must be managed with some skill to avoid wounding 
the trunk with the whiffletree, or cutting and exposing 
the roots with the share, and the distance of plow 
cultivation from the tree should be increased each 
year, to avoid injury to the growing roots. On this 
account, the surface near the tree should not be dis- 
turbed more than two or three inches deep, after the 
latter has acquired considerable size, and this opera- 
tion should be performed with a digging-fork. Almost 
every cultivator of trees has observed striking instances 
of the difference in their growth, when cultivated or 
neglected ; but the narrative of one may not be inap- 
propriate. A few years since, a gentleman, having 
planted a considerable number of pear and other fruit- 
trees, devoted a portion of the ground occupied by 



114 SELECTING, PLAJ^TING, AND CITLTIVATION. 

them to his vegetable garden, while the remainder 
was retained as a lawn. The trees growing in the 
trenched and cultivated garden are handsome pyra- 
mids, ten feet high, and in bearing, while those in the 
lawn, although with a space of two feet around them 
cleared from grass, have not perceptibly increased for 
six years. 

MULCHING. 

1^0 process will more essentially aid in sustaining 
the life of a tree, enabling it to resist the rude shock 
of being torn from its native soil, and inducing vigor- 
ous growth, than mulching, or covering the soil with 
any waste or half-decayed vegetable material. The 
half-rotted straw of the bottoms of stacks, leaves gath- 
ered from the woods, the refuse clippings and tan-bark 
from leather factories, are all of value for this purpose. 
Covering the ground with these, three or four inches 
deep, around the newly-planted trees, has the effect of 
preserving a moist condition of the soil, and an even 
temperature during the great heat of summer. A most 
important element in the growth of plants is this pre- 
servation of an equable temperature, as may be seen 
in a cold vinery, where the range of the thermometer 
scarcely varies ten degrees during day and night. The 
mulching also protects the ground from excessive 
evaporation ; so that, during long periods of drought, 
the ground remains uniformly moist and light. To 
the Pear this treatment is peculiarly grateful, for 
there are few plants in which respiration goes on so 
rapidly, and which require such constant supplies of 
moisture. A curious and instructive experiment is 
narrated. A pear tree was grown in a large tub until 



MULCHING. 115 

it had obtained a vigorous condition, and when the 
soil was in a comparatively low state of humidity, 
the weight of the vessel with its earth and tree was 
ascertained. 

In a warm July day, a given weight of water was 
supplied, and the earth protected from surface evapor- 
ation by a cover. In forty hours, the whole was again 
weighed, when it was found that seven gallons of 
water had been thrown off by the leaves of the tree, 
or more than twice its own weight. 

Prof. Mapes narrates an experiment which he 
perfoxined upon a pyramidal pear tree three years 
planted, and seven feet high. A hole was dug 
beneath one of the largest roots, which remaining 
attached to the tree, and with all its spongioles as 
nearly entire as possible, was placed in a pail of water, 
and the whole carefully covered with a blanket. In 
twenty-four hours the tree was found to have appro- 
priated nearly two gallons of the water. 'No small 
benefit derived from mulching, is owing to the fact 
that trees so treated need no watering ; and the excuse 
for the barbarous practice of frequently drenching 
their delicate rootlets with cold water is removed. 
Poorly-rooted trees, or such as have been exposed 
before planting, or are quite withered and dry, or 
indeed all plants which survive transplanting with 
much difficulty, can in many instances be saved by 
mulching deeply for five or six feet about the tree. 
The loose texture of the mulch does not prevent 
atmospheric contact with the soil, and being con- 
stantly damp, both the mulch and the earth absorb 
ammonia and carbonic acid vapor. Some varieties of 



116 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 

pear of great excellence, which crack badly, may be 
ripened in perfection by mulching, as the cracking is 
in some degree due to an insufficient supply of sap. 
The mulch not only acts as an absorbent of fertilizing 
gases, but in time becomes itself a valuable manure. 

Tliere are, however, some counterbalancing disad- 
vantages in mulching, which will coniine its practice 
to the single season of planting. The immense in- 
crease of insects, which will propagate in its shelter 
— the ravages of mice that find beneath it security 
from pursuit — and the late growth of shoots which it 
induces, liable to winter-blight, are some of the effects 
of its continuance. 

After much experiment, I am convinced that the 
best mulch for any other than newly-planted trees is 
a soil often stirred with the dew upon it. 

CROPPING THE GROUND FOR A MULCH. 

A very convenient substitute for litter, and one 
from which none of the evils noted will result, is an 
early crop of some of the broad-leaved vegetables. 
Tm-nips, beets, and potatoes, are valuable in the order 
they are mentioned for tliis purpose, and would in 
most cases repay the labor of cultivating the trees on 
them. The first two have the additional advantage 
of penetrating and loosening the soil without bruising 
the roots of the trees ; and by the superior coolness of 
their leaves to the night-air, condense the humidity 
in currents of atmospliere passing over them, in the 
shape of dew, which would have fallen upon the 
plowed field or the dusty road ; and thus assist in 
nourishing the feebler foliage of the newly-planted 



SPECIAL MANURES AFTER PLANTING. 117 

trees. Notwithstanding all these devices for pre- 
serving moisture in the earth, the golden rule of agri- 
culture should be remembered. Soils disturbed when 
dry, or during the heat of the day, loose their moisture ; 
but plowed or hoed in early morning, more moisture 
is acquired. 

SPECIAL MANURES FOR THE PEARS AFTER PLANTING. 

That a Flemish Beauty or a ]N'apoleon will be pro- 
duced in perfection in one soil, while, a mile distant, 
and in one of precisely similar appearance, they fail 
to be anything more than second rate, is a mystery 
that has hitherto mocked our investigation. It is 
unfortunate that nostrums, based upon some degree 
of knowledge of the necessities of the case, have been 
palmed off upon the community, deterring many 
persons from further investigation; still, when we 
recollect what science has done for human develop- 
ment, it may reasonably be expected to perform much 
for vegetation. 

If it is remembered, that it is a great thing in an 
experiment to have Nature upon one's side^ the ana- 
lysis of the Pear will suggest the course our invest- 
igation should take. 

It is not unfrequent that trees exhibiting every 
quality requisite for fruiting fail for many years to 
produce a single pear, when the application of a bushel 
of lime, a dressing of wood-ashes, a small quantity of 
bone-meal, or of iron filings, or refuse sand from the 
foundry, has brought them into immediate fruitfulness. 
I have seen some very surprising effects of some of 
these materials, in the vigorous growth and fruiting 



118 SELECTING, PLANTING, A2<(D CULTIVATION. 

of trees hitherto barren. It should be understood, 
that a tree can no more grow, and produce fruit, 
when one of its elements is lacking^ though all the 
others are present, than a house can be built, when 
all its materials, except the nails, have been obtained. 

Mr. Downing was of the opinion, that bones finely 
ground and mixed with wood-ashes, would prevent 
the leaf-rust ; and several nurserymen who have used 
the compost seem to adopt the same belief. 

Mr. Baijky very tersely and happily remarks : 
',' Bone-dust, blacksmiths' cindei-s, muck-lime, w^ood- 
ashes, and half a dozen other things, have been recom- 
mended to be compounded, in pecks and half-pecks, 
all with a view to remedy the rust, or leaf-blight, that 
no man can say originates in any defect of the soil." 
But the failure of specific manures to produce certain 
results, for which no rationale founded in natural 
science could be given, ought not to deter us from 
investigation in a philosophical manner. Some simple 
facts illustrative of the value of scientific knowledge 
in the management of the Pear may be stated. On 
a plot of rich ground, where blight had year after 
year affected the Pear, its farther ravages were pre- 
vented by a large application of lime ; this was 
accounted for by the destructive action of the lime 
upon the excessive organic matter of the soil, thus 
inducing a more stocky and well ripened growth. 
Dr. E". R. Teft, of Onondaga, so changed the appear- 
ance, in shape and size, of the fruit borne on a Yir- 
galieu pear tree by a very large application of leached 
ashes, that specimens of it received the premium from 
the American Institute as the best new table-pear. 



SPECIAL MANURES AFTER PLANTING. 119 

Some remarkably fine Bartletts, and handsome 
specimens of other varieties, having attracted atten- 
tion, they were found to have been raised by a black- 
smith of Newtown, Long Island, from trees that 
received the refuse of his forge. 

At the Exhibition of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society, 1857, which was pronounced by Europeans 
superior in its show of pears to any which could be 
made in Europe, the collection of Mr. Bacon was 
awarded the highest premium for the ten best varieties. 
These pears, the most beautiful in color, regular in 
shape, and the largest in size of their respective vari- 
eties, were grown over a salt marsh which had been 
filled tlii-ee or four feet. I ascertained, on inquiry, that 
several other gardens, which occupied similar posi- 
tions, were remarkable for the fine pears grown upon 
them. The I^Tapoleon, Soldat Laboureur, and other 
new varieties, that have generally proved but second- 
rate, have been produced of the very highest quality, 
when the trees had been liberally treated to super- 
phosphate of lime. 

Dr. LiNDLEY, author of a treatise on "Vegetable 
Physiology," and a nurseryman of great experience in 
England, strongly recommends the use of superphos- 
phate of lime for newly-planted trees, as it excites the 
rapid formation of fibrous roots, and thus provides for 
supplying the great waste of fluids, which is carried 
on with such rapidity from the leaves and branches. 

These facts, even if they teach us nothing positive, 
certainly indicate the direction in which ouj- invest- 
igations should be pursued. 



120 SELECTING, PLANTING, AND CULTIVATION. 



INVIGORATING OLD TREES. 

The cause of the want of vigor, slow growth, often 
of entire cessation of increase in pear trees of con- 
siderable size, is generally tlie exhaustion of the soil 
within the range of their roots ; the whole energy of 
the trees being devoted to sustaining the fruit buds and 
spurs, no wood growth can be made while this exliaust- 
ive fruit production proceeds. Tliere is also an entire 
suspension of the absorptive and perspiratory func- 
tions of the bark caused by the incrustation of dead 
bark, moss, and fungi that cover the tree. The aged 
roots have lost their radicles, and do not possess the 
power to push out spongioles into new and unex- 
hausted soil. 

Tliese conditions suggest at once the remedy. A 
trench should be dug around the tree, at about as many 
feet distant from it as there are inches in the diameter 
of the trunk, though rarely farther than six or eight 
feet. This trench should be at least two or three feet 
wide, and as deep as the roots penetrate, the latter 
being pruned off with a smooth cut. The sods around 
the trees should be pared off to the depth of four or 
five inches, and mixed with manure to fill the trench, 
and a good generous compost of new earth and barn- 
yard manure should be put around the tree in place 
of the sods removed. The old and feeble branches 
having only fruit spurs, should be shortened in such a 
manner as to form a handsome top. The rough fun- 
gus bark should be gently scraped away, care being 
taken not to expose the vital bark beneath. A better 
method is to wash with strong soap-suds or potash 



GEAFriNG LAliGK TKl^KS. 121 

water ; the old bark will be loosened and pushed off 
by the new formation of bark beneath. 

If the tree is of an inferior or wild variety, the 
smaller branches may be filled with grafts, of which a 
large number should be set, in order not to prune the 
tree too severely, and also to furnish it as soon as pos- 
sible with new respiratory organs. 

GRAiiTING LARGE TREES. 

It is a very common result of grafting large trees, 
that after producing an apparently vigorous growth 
for two or three years, they exhibit tokens of disease, 
and finally die. 

There is little doubt that this is the result of too 
great an interference with the structure of the tree, by 
cutting away nearly all the top in a snigle season, for 
the purpose of grafting. The roots prepared by a 
vigorous top, with an abundance of rich condensed 
sap, are, in their turn, ready to offer a copious supply 
to the top, for elaboration, and oxygenizing by the 
leaves. 

Thrown back or suspended in the structure of the 
tree by this severe pruning, the sap becomes condensed 
by evaporation, and remains clogging and suffocating 
the vital energies of the tree, which makes strenuous 
efforts to supply itself with the organs of respiration. 

The true method of grafting trees more than five or 
six years old is, to remove not more than one-third to 
one-half of the top in one season, and set a very large 
number of grafts in the limbs, or to dig a trench about 
the tree, and thus shorten the roots to prevent too large 
a supply of sap. 



PAET lY.—THE PEAK UPON THE QUHsTCE 
STOCK. 

OFFICE OF THE QUINCE. 

The office of the Quince, in its association with the 
pear tree, does not seem to have been generally con- 
sidered. It is the only one of our fruit-trees which is 
readily propagated from layers or cuttings. Of one 
thousand cuttings of other species of fruit-trees, 
planted in the ordinary manner, but a very few 
would strike root, while of the same number of the 
Quince, but very few would fail to grow. The por- 
tion of quince on a quince-rooted pear tree, which 
has hitherto served as trunk, will, if covered with soil, 
in a few days, throw out rootlets, and thenceforth per- 
form the office of root to the tree it supj)orts. It seems 
therefore, incredible, that with these facts in view, 
intelligent cultivators should have failed to provide 
the conditions for the Quince to fulfill its office. 

By planting so deeply that the Quince is entirely 
beneath the ground, all the objections to its use in 
propagating the Pear are overcome. The principal 
of these objections are : First^ that the Pear grown on 
the Quince is short-lived. Second^ that the trees often 
break at the junction, from imperfect union. Thirds 
they are always of small size. Fourth^ that the Pear 
( 122 ) 



CAUSES OF FAILUEE. 123 

outgrows the Quince, and produces a deformity. All 
these difficulties have been remedied, or avoided 
altogether, by planting so deeply that the Quince is 
entirely beneath the ground, for the office of the Qioince 
is entirely as a root^ and luver as a trunh. 

CAUSES OF THE FAILURE OF THE PEAK ON THE QUINCE. 

The introduction of new plants, or of novel modes 
of cultivating old ones, is always attended with many 
failures, arising from insufficient knowledge of the 
conditions necessary to the success of the experiments. 

The value of the Quince as a stock for the Pear has 
been a subject of much dispute ; but candid observers, 
aiming only at the exact truth, have settled into the 
conviction, that its failure for this purpose has pro- 
ceeded in every instance from some neglect of the 
necessary conditions of its growth. The causes of 
failure may be summed up as follows : 

First — In the heat of the first demand for pear trees 
upon quince stocks, many thousands of the common 
or Portugal Quince were used. This variety is entirely 
unfitted for this purpose, by its slow growth, and 
slight assimilation with the Pear, and the small size it 
attains. 

Second — All the varieties of pear were at first indis- 
criminately grown on the Quince, without regard to 
their fitness. But it is now well ascertained that only 
a limited number of our finer pears are entirely 
adapted to the Quince. 

Third — The office of the Quince in the double tree 
being wholly mistaken, it was planted as it stood in 
^he nursery, often with the junction of the two species 



124: THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

from three to eight inches above the soil ; and in ad- 
dition to this mischievons practice, the tree was not 
unfrequently trimmed up as a standard. This method 
of pruning gave the top, when large, a great lever 
power at the ground ; and the trees, unable to resist 
the force of the wind, often parted at the junction of 
the bud with the stock. If the tree survived, it was 
often a monstrosity of growth, the pear swelling out 
to twice the diameter of the quince. 

ADVANTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 

The conditions and advantages of the use of quince 
stocks, have been so fairly and clearly set forth in a 
communication of Mr. Louis Berckmans to The Agri- 
culturist^ that I shall insert it here. Mr. Berckmans 
has devoted a life of great activity and intelligence 
to experiments upon the Pear — enjoying the personal 
acquaintance of those gentlemen, both in Europe and 
America, whose names will always be associated with 
its culture. His collection is large, and embraces 
selections from the best seedlings of Yan Mons, Es- 
PERiN, BivoRT, and others. His great experience 
entitles his testimony to the highest consideration. 

In answer to the vexed queetion — Will pears budded 
on the Quince succeed ? — Mr. Berckmans says ; "I 
have no hesitation in saying : ' Yes, they will ;' and often 
better than on pear stocks, and they are less subject to 
Might. I know that I do not agree with the opinions 
of my late friends Yan Mons and Esperin, who never 
would admit a quince stock in their experimental 
gardens. I respect their memory, but cannot help 
considering their opinion as a prejudice. They had 



ADVANTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 125 

not found the good quince stock, and, perhaps, did not 
know how to plant quince-grafted trees. Unless the 
proper quince stock be used, no good result need be 
expected. I have seen some singular mistakes in 
publications, for want of proper attention paid to the 
question, whether trees had heen budded ujpon the An- 
gers^ or upon the indigenous quince, the latter being 
very inferior, if not worthless. The quince stock for 
nurseries is produced from the twigs or branches 
heeled or laid in before winter, and planted early in 
the spring. This operation succeeds better in damp 
and cool climates, and in sandy soils, than in this part 
of the United States. Therefore, most of those plants 
are imported (chiefly from France), although they 
can be produced here, with proper care, in soils iitted 
for them. 

" At present, my best trees are on the Quince ; and 
my best fruit also. Those who would successfully 
cultivate the dwarfs must pay attention to the follow- 
ing rules : 

" 1. Have a good, substantial, rather deep soil, with 
porous or drained subsoil. 

2. Select the good Angers or Orleans Quince for 
stock. 

" 3. Plant no other varieties than those which suc- 
ceed on the Quince. 

" 4. Plant the trees deep enough, so that the place 
where they have been budded shall be at least three 
inches below the surface of the soil. In rolling ground, 
cover with stones, or damp mould, so as to prevent 
the washing away of the light soil. 

" 5. Keep the weeds down. 



126 THE PEAK UPON IHE QUINCE STOCK. 

" 6. Keep tlie branches low, and make a pyramidal 
tree, by judicious pruning once or twice a year. A tree 
with a heavy, high top, must not be upon the Quince. 
Levels or gentle slopes are better than hills or rolling 
ground. 

" It is a fortunate circumstance that most of the best 
market varieties are also best suited to the quince 
stock. Yery often the grafted tree, when placed in 
silicious (sandy) soil or loam, forms its own roots just 
where it has been budded ; and then, with the steadi- 
ness of the pear stock, it retains the fertility of the 
Quince. 

" Mach has been said about the short-living of the 
quince stock. If properly planted in genial soil, which 
is not exhausted or impoverished by intervening field 
crops without a reasonable supply of manure, as most 
of our apple orchards are ; if free from ill weeds and 
shrubs, and other drawbacks, the quince-grafted tree 
will thrive for fifty years or more. Some actual facts 
will prove what I state. Hon. M. P. Wilder has in 
his garden, in Dorchester, trees which he bought from 
the widow of Mr. Parmisntier, Long Island, some 
twenty years ago. They have yielded fine crops 
almost every year. Some have been regrafted with 
new varieties ; one of them with Beurre Clairgeau, 
which bore this year between one and two bushels 
of the finest and largest pears. These trees look 
healthy, despite all their mutilations, and there is 
no reason to anticipate a diminution of growth or 
crops. These trees are on the Quince^ but they have 
been planted by a man who knows how to manage 
trees. 



ADVANTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 127 

" In the same garden are some fine Urbaniste trees — • 
a part on the Pear, and a part on the Quince — planted 
in the same spot, in the same year. Those on the pear 
roots are now beginning to bear fruit sparingly, 
while the others, on quince, have yielded bushels of 
fruit for the last seven years, and are actually loaded 
with a splendid crop. All are equally healthy ; but, 
those on pear stocks, not having exhausted part of 
their vigor in the best marketable produce for years 
back, are rather more vigorous. By thinning the crop 
early, so as to make it moderate, those pyramids may 
be easily brought up to the full vigor of their unpro- 
ductive neighbors. ]S'ow comes the important ques- 
tion : 

" ^ Will quince roots do for orchards T 

For orchards, as we find them on most of our farms, 
a promenade ground for cattle, a dreary waste of ill 
weeds, badly cultivated and shallop soil, stagnant 
water, injudicious selection of varieties, and more 
injudicious pruning with axes or dull chopping-knives 
— no, sir ! No fruit-tree of a refined class, no tree 
of any value, will do in such conditions. One half 
of the trouble, manure, and labor, which a poor vine- 
yard requires in France, would make a thrifty pear 
orchard, and would certainly pay better. 

"Let us look at some fine nurseries (schools) or 
orchards where specimen trees are cultivated with 
care, and in proper soil and localities, and facts (those 
stubborn) things will soon bring conviction in the place 
of doubts. 

" Messrs. Elwanger & Berry, and others, in Roches- 
ter; Mr. Wilder and Mr. Hovey, near Boston; Chas. 



128 THE PEAB UPON TffE QUINCE STOCK. 

Downing, in ^N^ewbiirg ; Dr. Grant, near Peekskill ; Mr. 
Reid, Elizabethtown, l!^ . J. ; and many others, cultivate 
the Pear on the quince stock with the best results. 
At Mr. Chas. Downing's, where every fruit and flower 
is cultivated in perfection, the surface of the ground 
in the dwarf orchards is covered with straw, refuse 
hay, &c., and no care nor cultivation is required ; no 
weeds find their way through that carpet, renewed or 
supplied witli new straw or brush every two or three 
years. Mr. Downing seems to be perfectly satisfied 
with his system, and indeed he must be. 

" In conclusion, let me say, that when one expects to 
reap the fruit of industry, he needs to give the proper 
attention to it ; if he expects a fruit-tree to yield crops 
of the most refined fruit, and to grow as a maple or a 
cedar iu the woods, he is badly mistaken. The old 
saying, that '' a tree must take care of itself," is non- 
sense, when applied to fruit-trees of improved kinds. 
It would do as well to plant dahlias ov prairie roses 
in a swamp, (.)r among thistles and briars. 

'' He who wants large crops of pears, indifferent in 
size or qiuility, may plant all his trees on the pear 
stock, iu deep soil ; but he has to wait from ten to 
fifteen years. If you want large, fine fruit, which, in 
fact, pays better, with less trouble and expense, select 
your varieties on the Quince. These will often bear 
the first year, and always the third or fourth from their 
planting. If I had thirty trees to plant, twenty should 
be on the Quince, the balance on pear stock. 

" Some varieties will not grow upon the Quince, but 
even these do well double worked — that is, budded or 
grafted upon a variety worked already upon the 



ADVAJNTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 129 

Quince and succeeding upon it. The French call it 
intermediary grafting. 

" In planting orchards, the same care and the same 
digging is required for a standard as for a quince 
stock, but how different the result 1 Ask Mr. Hovey, 
and others around Boston, from which they derive 
their largest profits. They all agree that the quince 
root has paid the soil, the expenses, tree and all, long 
before 2ipear stock has shown any sign of bearing. 

" Below is, according to my own and my friends' 
experience, a list of varieties which will do for the 
mai'ket, till new and as good varieties can be added. 
We must consider that the introduction of new varie- 
ties of fruit into the market is not an easy thing. 
Those named below are also the best adapted to the 
most of the States between thirty and forty degrees of 
north latitude. 
" I. — Varieties of Pears which do well on the pear stock, or when 

DOUBLE worked. 

" Those marked a do not succeed w^ell on quince 
stocks. Those marked h do bear as early and as well 
as others on the Quince. They are arranged accord- 
ing to their value for general cultivation, market pur- 
poses, &c : 



6. Bartlett— Sept. 

h. Madeleine — Aug. 

a. Seckle, (sometimes does well on 

Quince.) 
h. Beurre Clairgeau — Oct., Nov. 
a. Columbia — Nov. 
a. Dix — Dec. 
a. Doyenne Boussock — Sept. 



a, Lawrence (often good on Quince) 

— Nov., Dec. 
a. Heathcot— Sept. 
a. Onondaga — Oct. 
a. Kingsessing — Sept. 
a. Pratt — Sept. Oct. 
— Philadelphia — Sept. 
h. Buflfum— Sept., Oct. 



And many others. The above are all goodrlodking 
fruitSj and of course will sell readily. 

6* 



130 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 



**II. — Varieties adapted to the quince stock, which also do wsll 
ON the pear stock. 



Louise Bonne de Jersey — Sept., 

Oct. 
Duchesse d'Angouleme — Oct., Nov, 
Beurre Diel — Oct., Nov. 
Vicar of Winkfield — winter. 
Urbaniste — Oct. Nov. 
Beurre Superfin — Oct. 
Beurre Hardy (or Sterckman) — 

Sept. 



Abbott — Sept. 

Belle Epine Dumas — Dec, Jan. 
Beurre d'Anjou — Oct., Nov. 
Flemish Beauty — Sept. 
Andrews — Sept. 
Kirkland's Seckle — Sept. 
Brandy wine — Sept. 
Steven's Genesee — Sept. 
Doyenne d'Alengon — winter. 



Glout Morceau — winter." 

We think nothing can be more conchisive with 
regard to this question than the testimony of various 
individuals of note in the cultivation of fruit ; among 
whom none rank higher than Marshall P. Wilder, 
whose views are expressed in the following remarks, 
given at length : " An impression has extensively 
prevailed unfavorable to the cultivation of the Pear 
on the Quince. This has arisen principally from an 
improper selection of kinds, or from injudicious cul- 
tivation. There are, however, three considerations 
which are absolutely necessary to success, viz., a 
deep, rich soil, the planting of the quince stock 
entirely below the surface of the ground, and a sys- 
tematic and scientific course of pruning, as the tree 
progresses in growth. 

" Objections to this species of cultivation have been 
made from the belief that the Quince was a short-lived 
tree, and that the crop must necessarily be small from 
what are termed dwarf-trees. Such, however, has 
not been my experience. On the contrary, I have 
jpear trees on the qxdnce root which are twenty-five 
years old^ and which produce annually a barrel or 



ADVANTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 131 

more of fruit each ; and for anglit that I can see, they 
are destined to survive as long as any that I possess 
on the pear root. These may, and probably have, in 
some instances, thrown out roots from the pear stock, 
but whether this be so, or not, instances are not rare 
wdiere such trees have attained in France the age of 
more than a hundred years ; and we know of a quince 
tree in Massachusetts which is forty years old, and 
which has produced ten bushels of fruit in a season. 

"The Pear, when grown on the Quince, should 
always be trained in the pyramidal form. These may 
be planted much closer than when grown as stan- 
dards. We have known them to succeed well where 
grown at the distance of six feet apart in the rows, 
and twelve feet between the rows. In this way Mr. 
Rivers, the great English cultivator, planted 2,500 
of the Louise Bonne de Jersey, and 1,500 Glout Mor- 
ceau for the London market. We consider twelve 
feet apart, each way, a liberal distance. This would 
give 302 trees to the acre ; and we are clearly of the 
opinion, that soil and selection of varieties being right, 
no crop whatever w^ould be more proiitable. Such a 
plantation, with proper care, would yield, in the fifth 
year, from seventy-five to one hundred bushels of 
fine fruit. As to profit, this will not appear as an 
exaggeration, when it is known that Glout Morceau 
pears, a variety which succeeds admirably on the 
Quince, have sold, during the winter, readily at one to 
two dollars per dozen. 

" We name as varieties which succeed well on the 
Quince the following, and to which might be added 
many more ; 



132 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

"Louise Bonne de Jersey, Yicar of Winkfield, 
Ducliesse d'Angouleme, Glout Morceau, Passe Colmar, 
Urbaniste, Belle et Bonne, Benrre d'Anjon, Beurre 
Diel, Easter Beurre, Beurre d'Amalis." 

The following, from the same gentleman, in answer 
to the published skepticism of a cultivator regarding 
the permanency of the quince stock, effectually dis- 
poses of his objections : " I have, in my grounds, 
many primitive pear trees from ten to seventeen feet in 
height, with trunks twenty-seven inches in circumfer- 
ence, and branching at the base from ten to twelve feet ; 
hundreds of these trees are from twelve to fifteen 
years of age — they have borne regular crops from the 
third or fourth year after planting, and in some 
instances I have gathered from the aforesaid trees, 
' not five or six beautiful pears,' only^ but from one 
bushel to one barrel per tree. I do further aver, 
that these trees were originally upon the quince 
stock — that some of them remain in that condition 
now, but that most of them have rooted from the 
pear stock. 

" That there may be no misunderstanding of terms, 
let it be remembered, that when I speak of dwarf 
pear trees, a term which I did not use in the quota- 
tion cited, it is in contradistinction to those which are 
on the pear root ; for we of Massachusetts do not 
allow pear trees, even those on the Quince, to remain 
dwarfs or ' monkeys.' IS'o, no, Mr. Stoms, we do not 
only make our pear trees grow, even on the Quince^ 
into beautiful, large pyramids, but we make them 
bear five to seven years earlier on the quince than 
they would on the pear stock. And, as to planting 



ADVANTAGES OF THE QUINCE AS A STOCK. 133 

deeply, so as to allow the pear stock to root, it is no 
' new thing with the intelligent Colonel,' for lie has 
always practiced this system — a fact well known to 
his Ohio friends, and to every one who has visited his 
grounds. 

" Mr. Stoms asks : ' Why graft on the quince stock 
at all V 

" Answer : To obtain ' early fruiting,' and the 
pleasure and profit of regular crops, for many years, 
before the trees would produce fruit on their own 
stock. 

" Again, he inquires : ' Will the Pear, under the 
circumstances he (Mr. Wilder) describes, (that is, 
rooting from the pear stock) continue to be a dwarf V 

" Answer : No ; nor do we desire that it should ; 
for, having commenced fruiting and furnished itself 
with fruit-spurs, it will continue to bear, whether on 
the pear or quince root, or on both ; and, as to ' longe- 
vity,' it is generally admitted that the more roots a 
tree has, the greater will be its strength, and the 
longer its duration of life. 

" Hence we plant the tree deep enough to allow it 
to root from the pear stock, and thus we kept the 
quince stock soft and emollient, also, causing it to 
swell evenly with the pear, and to emit roots through- 
out its stem, which it will do, if kept below the sur- 
face of the soil. 

" Mr. Stoms further says : ' When the friends of 
dwarf pear tree culture shall come forward, and, with 
' bill of particulars,' show me an orchard of five hun- 
dred dwarf pear trees, that have been ten years 



134 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

planted, which have borne fruit successfully dindipaid 
cost^ I will give up the contest.' 

" I will then take him to my neighbor, Austin's, 
the Treasurer of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society, who has five hundred and ten pear trees. All 
these are on the quince root, with the exception of 
one or two dozen, which are on the pear root ; but as 
these latter have borne but little fruit, Mr. S. will not 
object to their being counted in the lot. These trees 
are from eleven to thirteen years of age. One hun- 
dred of them are Louise Bonne de Jerseys. These 
trees commenced about three years after planting, 
have borne regular and abundant crops ever since, 
and are now in a very vigorous and healthy condition. 
No account of the crops were kept until the year 
1851, but Mr. Austin has kindly furnished me with 
the amount of his sales since that date. The total 
sales, for six years, were $3,408.76. The original cost 
of these trees was about fifty cents each, or $250. 
Mr. Austin is a merchant, and goes to the city every 
day, and the only help he has had, is the service of a 
man who takes care of his stables and grounds. He 
has, however, given them his personal attention, and 
good cultivation : but, I think, without further estima- 
tion of ' cost^'' we may reasonably conclude that these 
'fiA)e hundred trees ' have ' home successfully., and 
paid cost.^ 

" We will then take a ride over to the Messrs. 
HovEY, where we shall find a much larger number of 
pear trees on the quince root. Their beautiful avenues 
are lined with them, some of which are from fifteen 
to twenty years of age ; but as it will occupy, perhaps, 



DWABF PEARS. 135 

too much time to examine all of them, we will take 
one walk as an example. How delighted Mr. S. must 
be to see 220 pear trees, 110 on each side, loaded with 
their luscious fruit, only eight or nine years planted, 
and all independently on the quince root. The pro- 
duct of those trees, in 1855, was twenty barrels — in 
1856, twenty-five barrels. The highest price obtained 
was twenty dollars per barrel, the lowest eight dollars. 
Then we can call on Mr. Stickney, and look at his 
' dwarf pear trees. We shall see some magnificent 
specimens of Urhanistes and Louise Bonne de Jerseys. 
The crop of the latter he sold the last season at ten 
dollars per bushel. Then we will go to Mr. Man- 
^sting's, who has some pear trees on the Quince of very 
large size, being from thirty to forty years old, and 
which ' still live,' and produce annual crops. Then 
we will pursue our journey on, and call on Mr. Cabot, 
the President of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society, Messrs. Bacon, Downer, Richardson, John- 
son, and others, who have splendid collections of 
' dwarfs pear trees which have been '- jplanted ten 
years ^ " 

Mr. R. BuisT, of Philadelphia, one of the most 
candid and reliable men, has published the following 
on 

DWARF PEARS. 

" Tliis term has led to the impression that all trees 
are dwarfs that are grafted on the quince stock ; we 
do not incline to this term, from the fact that we cul- 
tivated dwarf pears before we knew of the efiects of 
the Pear on the Quince, and also from the fact that we 
now have very fine standard trees, with stems six and 



136 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

seven feet clear, that are on the quince stock. The 
Pear, Apple, Quince, Hawthorn, and Mountain Ash, all 
belong to the same class and order, and will grow if 
grafted on each other ; they do not all, however, assi- 
milate well with each other, for we find that there are 
some Apples that will not grow on the Pear, and vice 
versa / there are also Pears, and not a few, that will 
not grow on the Quince ; others that grow well, but 
their fruits are inferior; whilst again many are greatly 
improved on the Quince. We now say that the Pear, 
to be successful on the quince stock, must be very 
highly cultivated with enriching manures of almost 
any description, incorporated with the surface-soil, 
and frequently stirred during the growing season, 
repeating the enriching material, and thorough culture, 
every season. They can be planted from ten to fifteen 
feet apart, and will, with such treatment, give a very 
abundant crop, even a bushel from a tree only a few 
years planted. This is not, however, the only atten- 
tion they require — they must have a summer pruning 
and a winter pruning, which you shall have in another 
chapter. 

Again, the quince stock is a very general term ; 
there is a vast diflerence in the hind of Quince, and 
it is now very strange that all the pears on the Quince, 
whether worked thereon the past year or ten years, 
are on what has recently been called to the peculiar 
benefit of some, the Angers Quince. Certain it is, 
that there is a variety aptly adapted to the vigor of 
the Pear, more generally known to the experienced 
eye by its growth as that variety ; and we think it is 
the variety only that demands particular notice. The 



DWAKF PEAKS. 137 

growth is clean and luxuriant, bark smooth and free, 
making shoots six feet high in a season, readily pro- 
pagated from cuttings, and even budded the first 
season. 

Every cutting, therefore, of that variety, should 
be carefully planted, on which you may grow either 
dwarf or standards^ with this result that the sorts of 
Pear w^orked thereon will come into bearing in two 
or three years, and continue productive for many 
years, say half a century, and be more ir^^from blight 
than if on the jjyear stocky which roots deep, descends 
into the cold ground perpendicularly, predisposes the 
tree to blight during summer, and if not blight, pro 
duces a redundancy of wood almost beyond practical 
management, and not at all adapted for gardens. 
Another point in favor of the quince stock I might 
refer to, is the certainty of its growth after being re- 
moved and conveyed to a distance, the many fibres 
close to the bole of the tree rendering its growth 
almost certain, (2^ least^ forty-nine out of fifty. The 
Pear on its own stock makes few fibres, and is more 
precarious in removal and carriage ; this is again par- 
tially under control by frequent removals in the nur- 
sery, when the trees are young, which checks their 
growth of wood, produces early fruiting properties, 
so that we hope to live to see dwarf fruiting fears on 
the pear stock as eagerly sought for as those now on 
the Angers Quince — you will please make a note of 
this assertion." 

The following from Mr. Hovey, author of '' Fruits 
of America," will be of interest to pomologists: 
" The cultivation of the Pear on the Quince is of such 



138 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

an ancient date, and has been so long and so suc- 
cessfully practiced in that great pear-growing country, 
France, that it appears somewhat absurd to see it 
attacked at this late day, as it has been by individuals 
who, either from want of experience or other causes, 
have not succeeded well in its cultivation on this 
stock, and hence would deny to a great portion of our 
community, for a series of years, so delicious a fruit 
as the Pear ; for in no way can it be obtained in any 
abundance, for half a generation after planting, except 
upon the Quince. 

An intelligent correspondent has shown the fal- 
lacy of the arguments made use of to disparage the 
quince stock, and it would be useless to go over the 
ground again. As he has truly said : " Let gentlemen 
botanists have their own way in disputing. On we 
shall go, reaping an abundance of fruit while they 
are cavilling in regard to a fact long ago established 
by the experience of men, not mere tyros in the work, 
but those who have made the question a study for life." 

RULES FOR GROWING THE PEAR ON THE QUINCE. 

From these just and lucid statements of distin- 
guished horticulturists, it is easy to learn that the 
requisites for successfully cultivating the Pear on the 
Quince are : 

1. That the pear should be budded on the Angers 
Quince, a free-growing variety — a tree rather than a 
shrub, like the Portugal Quince. Several specimens 
of this variety, on my grounds, have grown, in two 
seasons, seven feet in height, and one inch and a 
quarter in diameter. 



ROOTING OF THE PEAJR. 139 

2. That only the right kinds of Pear should be grown 
on the Quince. 

3. That the Quince should be considered in this 
compound tree, only as a root, and never as a trunk 
or stem ; and, therefore, should be planted entirely 
below the soil. 

4. That the tree should be trained low, in the 
pyramid shape. 

5. That weeds and grass, and, of course, the grains, 
must not be permitted to grow among the trees — • 
as they would interfere with the development of the 
lower limbs, and abstract the nourishment that should 
go to the tree. 

6. That the soil should be kept in good condition, 
well manured, well cultivated, and dry. 

The violation of these rules has, without doubt, 
been the cause of all the failures of the Pear on the 
Quince. 

ROOTING- OF THE PEAR ON QUINCE STOCKS. 

It is very difficult to induce the Pear to form roots 
from cuttings or layers, under the ordinary circum- 
stances attending such propagation. Most varieties 
of the Pear, however, w^hen budded on the Quince, 
and planted with the junction from two to four inches 
below the surface, exhibit a great tendency to throw 
out roots from the pear wood above the junction. 

Mr. Wilder, and some other horticulturists, believe 
this to indicate a natural repugnance in those varieties 
to the Quince ; but my own experience does not confirm 
this. Of a considerable number of Bartletts removed 
after being three years planted in the fruit-ground, 



140 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

not more than half a dozen had rooted, and these 
very feebly ; while it is well known that this variety 
succeeds only indifferently upon the Quince. Other 
facts, however, do tend to confirm this theory. I have 
seldom found the Duchesse exhibiting any tendency 
to throw out roots. While of several hundred of 
other varieties, five or six years old, removed at the 
same time with the Bartletts above-mentioned, more 
than half liad rooted from the pear wood, and the 
character of the roots was somewhat striking. When 
a wild or seedling pear is budded and planted in the 
fruit grounds, its tendency to form long, straggling 
roots, almost destitute of fibres, unless root-pruned or 
retransplanted, is well-known ; but every one of the 
roots from the pear wood above the quince stock of 
these trees, was provided with such masses of fibres, 
that it was nearly impossible to free them from the 
adhering soil. Remarkable as is this faculty of fibrous 
rooting of the Quince, it is much more surprising in 
the Pear, wlien grown on the quince stock. Many 
roots, three or four feet long will be found, fringed 
with fibres throughout tlieir entire length, and in such 
masses as to render it necessary to greatly thin them, 
when reset in the ground, to allow them to be sepa- 
rated by particles of soil. In some cases, I have found 
the quince root entirely superseded and cast off. In 
others, the double root seemed to be in perfect har- 
mony, and both parts thrifty and vigorous. In most 
cases the pear root had been formed on one side of 
the tree, and rapidly radiating and swelling at the 
junction, had usurped the entire ground, and held the 
tree firmly and strongly hi the soil. To test the fact 



ROOTmG OF THE PEAR. 141 

of the rooting of the Pear above the Quince, it is only 
necessary to seize the tree by the body three or four 
feet above the ground, and shake it slowly, and if 
pear-rooted, the superior firmness will be readily per- 
ceived. The wood-growth and foliage of all trees, 
throwing out roots above the quince stock, will be 
found to be more vigorous, but the production of fruit 
will be considerably delayed. If a strong, vigorous 
shoot or sucker grows up from near the ground, or if 
the branches are much more strongly developed on 
one side, it is quite certain that the Pear has rooted. 
I am often asked, if the tree roots from the Pear, what 
advantage is gained by growing upon the Quince ? 

This query may be answ^ered by a statement of the 
following facts : 

First. Many of the varieties budded on the Quince 
do not obtain pear roots sufficient to support the 
tree before the sixth or eighth year, and the trees, 
in the mean time, have borne fruit three or four 
years, while if budded on the pear stock, few of them 
would have yielded fruit in less than eight or twelve 
years. 

Second. The greater vitality of the Quince root has 
preserved life in a large per-centage of the trees, 
which, under ordinary care, would have perished if 
budded on pear roots. The ratio of loss by trans- 
planting healthy trees on quince roots, with but 
moderate care, is not more than one per cent, while 
that of pear trees on pear roots, is much greater. 
After the pear roots form above the Quince, the tree 
is (from causes which will be hereafter investigated) so 
much better furnished with fibres, that it will endure 



142 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

transplanting and root pruning better, and also con- 
tinue much longer its growth and fruiting. 

Third. The quince root has so governed the growth 
of the tree, that it is much less difficult to reduce it 
to pyramidal shape ; for it has been proved by expe- 
rience, that the character of the roots determines that 
of the top. Long, straggling roots, not provided with 
fibres, are productive of long, vigorous, and unmanage- 
able shoots, destitute of lateral branches. A long 
tap-root sends up a vigorous leader, while the fibrous 
quince roots provide the tree with fruit-spurs and 
short, stout branches. The Pear on a pear stock ig 
not easily reduced to a pyramidal shape after the 
first year, without root pruning, for w^hen the leader 
is pruned, the terminal bud shoots with great vigor, 
and another leader is formed while the lower branches 
continue weak and feeble. 

Fourth. Most of the varieties which are superior 
in size and flavor on the Quince, or whicli unite firmly 
with it, and prove well adapted to it, as the Duchesse 
d'Angoul6me and Louise Bonne de Jersey, seldom 
throw out roots from the pear wood. In those 
varieties which throw out pear roots, it has been 
seen that the latter are more fibrous than upon 
seedlings. This is, doubtless, the result of the more 
refined and cultivated condition of the grafted wood, 
which, instead of the rank characteristic of a seedling, 
makes the clean, stocky shoots of a more highly 
developed tree. So the finer varieties of pears, 
instead of the long naked roots of the wildling, pro- 
vide themselves witli fibrous radicles better fitted to 
furnish them their proper food. 



HOW TO PRODUCE PEAR ROOTENG. 143 

This fact has tended to confirm horticulturists in 
the belief in the necesity of an adaptation of the 
graft to the stock. If this theory is correct, what 
roots can be better adapted to the demands of the 
graft than those put forth by the graft itself. From 
these facts, it may be seen that if any pear-grower is 
deficient in faith in the durability of quince stocks, 
he can insure the longevity of his trees by planting 
them sufficiently deep to produce pear roots. 

HOW TO PRODUCE PEAR ROOTING. 

When the leaves ripen in early September, the sap 
has assumed that albuminous and ripened condition 
which fits it for forming new spongioles and root- 
lets. If, prior to this condition, several incisions are 
made in the pear bark and wood, just at the swell- 
ing of the graft, by pushing a small gouge upw^ards, 
so as to form tongues or strips an inch long, hang- 
ing by their upper ends ; the sap, checked in its 
downward flow, will soon cover the incision with 
a soft, white, albuminous substance, which, if well 
covered with firmly packed earth, will soon form root- 
lets, that, before the ensuing winter, will be in a 
vigorous condition. It is well to place a small pebble 
between the tongue and trunk to prevent adhesion. 
The production of these roots is due to the same influ- 
ence which causes the union of the bud with the 
stock when inserted at the same season. The sap, in 
its downward flow, depositing the mucus that would 
have hardened into bark and wood, is, by the check, 
diverted to the formation of rootlets and fibres which 
will, the next year, provide food for growth or fruit. 



144 THE PEAR UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

It does not seem to have been considered by horticul- 
turists, that the absorbing powers are not retained by 
spongioles and rootlets much longer than a single 
season, and that they need constant renewal. When 
the hardening of these spongioles takes place, they 
are no longer capable of aflbrding a supply of nutri- 
ment proportionate to the wants of the tree. Most 
tree culturists will have noticed that the fibres and 
spongioles are not found on the larger and older roots, 
but that, having fulfilled their ofiice, they decay, as 
N^ature never supports useless organs. 

What will be the effect of pear-rooting upon those 
v^arieties that are so much superior upon the Quince, 
must be determined by more experience than we 
possess at present. There is but little doubt, however, 
that the pear-rooting of such varieties as are gritty or 
astringent on pear stocks is to be avoided. 

The Duchesse d'Angouleme, which is not often first- 
rate on pear roots, because of its hard lumpy flesh and 
gritty core, and the Louise Bonne de Jersey and Beurr^ 
Diel, which are often astringent and bitter, on the 
same stock, can hardly be allowed to root from the 
pear wood. This may be prevented when necessary, 
by planting more shallow, leaving the pear-wood but 
little below the surface. 

DOUBLE WORKING. 

It is often desirable to improve the texture and 
flavor of some varieties of pears, by growing them 
upon the Quince, although they have proved unadap ted 
to it. The desired effect is obtained by double work- 
ing — as it is the roots, the providers of nourishment, 



DOUBLE WORKING. 145 

that govern to a great extent these characteristics in the 
fruit. Any free-growing varieties may be budded on 
the Quince, for the purpose of double working, although 
some care should be taken to obtain such as harmon- 
ize with the Quince. The Yirgalieu and the Buffam 
are the best, although not the most vigorous growers ; 
yet most pears grow well, when propagated upon 
them. 

The Beurre d'Amalis and Soldat Laboureur, are 
very vigorous growers, and make good stocks for 
double working. There are such obvious advantages 
in double working, that it seems almost superfluous 
to mention them, yet that nothing may be omitted to 
secure success, we present them in a concise form : 

1. Pears that refuse to grow, or grow but feebly, 
or are short-lived upon the Quince, but are coarse, 
gritty, or small sized, when grown upon the pear 
stock, like the Beurre d'Aremberg, often become first- 
rate by double working. 

2. Varieties that are so tardy in bearing upon tlie 
pear stock as to exhaust the patience and faith of tlie 
grower, yet will not harmonize directly w4th the 
Quince, will, by double working, come early into bear- 
ing. The Dix and Seckel are examples of this. 

3. Grafting, which cannot be practiced with suc- 
cess directly on the Quince, may be performed on the 
Pear portion of the stock. 

4. Some varieties that bear quite early on the pear 
stock, but are of comparatively slow growth, are pro- 
duced in greater vigor upon the double stock, in con- 
sequence of the increased vigor acquired from the 
strong growing variety first worked upon the Quince. 

7 



146 THE PEAK UPON THE QUINCE STOCK. 

VARIETIES FOR DOUBLE WORKING. 

The following varieties, which have proved averse 
to the Quince, will, by double working, bear fruit 
improved in texture, size, and flavor : 

Beurre d'Aremberg — coarse, woody, and gritty, on 
pear roots, and a feeble, diseased grower, directly on 
the Quince. 

Napoleon — often scarred and spotted on the Pear, 
but frequently handsome and smooth upon a double- 
worked tree. 

Bartlett — although fine when grown on the pear 
stock, is much improved on the Quince. 

Beurre Glairgeau — coarse on pear roots, somewhat 
averse to the Quince, but nearly first-rate upon double- 
Avorked trees. 

The following varieties, that are tardy in bearing, 
are but moderately improved by the Quince in quality, 
and are propagated with difiiculty upon that stock, 
but may be profitably grown by double working : 

Beurre Bosc, Dix, Seckel, Tyson, Andrews, Fulton, 
Lawrence, "Winter Kelis, Marie Louise, Beurre iJanee, 
St. Michael Archange, Columbia. 



PAET Y.— PKUKIKG. 

ADVANTAGES OF A PTKAMIDAL FOKM FOR PEAE TREES, 
BOTH ON QUINCE AND PEAR STOCKS. 

The advantages which seem to be gained by a 
pyramidal growth in the pear tree, more especially, 
are: 

1. There is no violent interference with the natural 
structure of the tree, but we rather aid it to attain 
this form more perfectly ; that is, we do not by 
crowding it in the nursery rows, or by cutting with 
the pruning-knife, deprive it of the natural formation 
of low branches. To cut any portion of the wood, of 
more than one year old, is to interfere more or less 
seriously with the organism of the tree ; and the 
occasion for it arises from neglect to prune at tlie 
proper time. To prevent malformation is better than 
to amputate ; and to form a tree properly, we must 
begin with the maiden plant. 

2. Low-branched pyramids come into bearing much 
sooner than trees with long trunks. The Pear, on its 
own stock, trained as a standard, varies with the kind, 
from eight to twenty years, in producing fruit ; but, 
trained as a pyramid, its period of fruit-bearing is 
lessened from four to twelve years. The Seckel and 

( 147 ) 



148 PRUNENG. 

Urbaniste, upon pear stock, and with naked trunks, 
of live or six feet, are not unfrequently fifteen years 
producing their first fruit. With low-trained pyra- 
mids, and a slight attention to summer pruning or 
pinching, this tedious and discouraging delay is most 
certainly shortened to six or eight years. The cause 
of this precocity is, that the sap, checked by the sum- 
mer pinching in its flow to the terminal bud, is dis- 
tributed to the wood-buds below, and sufficient nutri- 
ment is received to mature them into fruit-buds. 

A certain age of bark and cellular woody formation 
of a branch is necessary before it will cause the sap 
to flow slowly enough to concentrate into fruit-juice. 
!N'ow, if the earlier branches, formed near the ground, 
and then, in succession, those above, are cut away, 
until a naked trunk is formed, it is evident we pro- 
tract the fruit-bearing period. Besides, the pruning 
away of so much wood forces an over-abundance of 
sap to the terminal buds, and its energies are spent in 
wood-growth, at the expense of fruit-bud formation. 
When, however, branches start from or near tlie 
ground, having the same age with the trunk, fruit- 
buds are formed long before they could have been on 
long-trunk trees ; the sap is more evenly distributed, 
wood-growth is moderately checked, and the culti- 
vator's eye is early gladdened with golden fruit. 

3. The size and quality of fruit is much increased 
by this method of training. It has long been known, 
that young trees produce larger fruit, but deficient in 
flavor ; old trees produce fruit of superior taste, but 
inferior in size. In the pyramid, we are able to secure 
these excellences, and rid ourselves of the faults. In 



PRTINING. 149 

the low, compact form, when an excessive quantity 
of fruit has set, it becomes an easy task to thin out 
the overplus, and concentrate the sap in that number 
which can be perfectly matured. 

4. A much larger number can be planted on a 
given area. Instead of forty pear trees, planted at 
forty feet apart, two hundred to four hundred may, 
for many years, occupy the same area, and yield their 
fruit to a whole generation without crowding. It is 
much easier to cut down a fruit tree that cost a few 
shillings, than it is to obtain it with fifteen years' ad- 
ditional growth for ten dollars. Many a man would 
hesitate to plant ten acres with four hundred pear 
trees, even when by pyramidal growth he could obtain 
a bushel from each, at six to eight years of age, who 
would gladly cover one acre with the same number, 
could he be assured that they would fruit equally well. 

5. Pyramidal trees, by their comparatively low 
stature, are protected from high winds, and often pre- 
serve their fruit when the tall tree has lost a large 
portion of the crop : thek* limbs are much less ex- 
posed to being broken by storms, or borne down by 
weight of fruit — whose power is mach increased by 
growing at the end of a long branch, which acts as a 
lever. 

6. Pyramidal trees are less liable to wrenching 
from the perpendicular, turning over by the roots, or 
breaking off: having tlieir widest diameter at or 
near the ground, they offer little resistance to the 
wind ; and never exhibit the distorted, leaning atti- 
tudes that characterize thousands of orchards. 

7. The trunk is protected by the foliage from the 



150 



PRUNING. 



parching sun-rays, and the sap reaches its destination 
just in the condition Nature provided it in the roots, 
without travelling an unnecessary distance. 



PRUNING TO FORM PYRAMIDS. 

It is with considerable difficulty that trees in the 
usual condition in which they are received from the 
nursery are reduced to a pyramidal form, branching 
from near the ground. If two years old from the bud, 



Fig. 88. 



Fig. 84. 





and lateral branches should have formed, the ruthless 
knife of the nurseryman has pruned them away. 
"Figs. 33 and 34 are specimens of trees where some 
feeble attempts have been made for the production 
of a pyramid. The lower cross lines in Fig. 34 indi- 
cate the vicious pruning such a tree would usually 



PRUNING TO FOKM PYRAMIDS. 161 

receive. The other lines show the points at which 
the limbs and trunk should be shortened. 

Having shortened the tree shown in Fig. 33, at A, 
the next effort of ISTature is to effect an aeration of the 
sap produced in the roots, and as there are but few 
buds to expand into leaves, a large amount of sap is 
thrown upon these few. 

The difficulties in forming pyramids from such 
trees are numerous. Unless the tree has been root- 
pruned, or recently transplanted, an effect of this 
severe shortening, called by horticulturists suffocation, 
ensues, and a sickly growth of small shoots is the 
result. Not unfrequently, several shoots start from 
near the amputation in a bushy cluster, or a gour- 
mand or two obstinately shoots up, absorbing all the 
sap. It will now become more and more difficult to 
draw out the buds below, and, after the bark is two 
years old, almost impossible. 

Under this treatment, we must thus commence our 
pyramid with a raw amputation, that will exhibit for 
years an ungainly scar, but there is nothing less severe 
to be done until we have better-formed nursery trees, 
and can remedy some of these evils, by commencing 
the process in the first season, as shown at Fig. 35, 
which has been already explained on page 99. 

If the tree shown at Fig. 33 is planted in the same 
season of its shortening, but little growth, of course, 
will be produced during the first year, but if per- 
fectly successful in avoiding all the mishaps noted, it 
will, at the end of the second year, exhibit somewhat 
the appearance of Fig. 36. If more shoots should 
have been produced than necessary, they must be 



152 



PKUNING. 



thinned so as to leave the remaining ones well bal- 
anced around the stem. Select one for a leader, that 



Fig. 85. 



Fig. 86. 





as nearly as possible occupies the centre of the group, 
and starts near the top. All the shoots ought now to 
be shortened in such a manner as to induce a cone 
shape to the tree. To effect this, the lower ones 
should be cut back to six or eight inches, the next 
reduced two inches more, and the next still more, 
until, as we approach the leader, the side shoots must 
be shortened to two or three buds. From this time, 
with proper attention to summer pinching, pruning 
might be almost entirely dispensed with; but as few 
persons will or can bestow the requisite lal»or, we 
shall still adapt the instructions to the ordinal v con- 
dition of trees. 



PRUNING TO FORM PYRAMIDS. 



153 



By attention to former suggestions, the tree, at the 
end of the third summer, may be expected to appear 
as in Fig. 37, and from this time, the progress of the 
tree in growth and shape is much more rapid. The 
trees exhibited at Figs. 37 and 38 are often exceeded 
in size by such as have been planted a year less, but 
they are much oftener not equalled in this respect by 
trees planted four or five years. 



Fig. 87. 



Fig. 88. 





154 

When the pyra- 
midal shape has be- 
come established, as 
in Fig. 38, the prun- 
ing is performed 
more directly with 
the intention of in- 
ducing the forma- 
tion of fruit-buds, 
but the preservation 
of the shape must 
still be kept in view. 
The line AB in Fig- 
ure 38 indicates the 
place at which the 
branches should be 
shortened. 

Fig. 39 is a well- 
balanced pyramidal 
Urbaniste, ten or 
twelve years old. 
The characteristic 
growth of this vari- 
ety may be observed 
in its too numerous 
branches. It can- 
not, however, be 
thinned to the ex- 
tent needed by other 
varieties without de- 



PRUKING. 



Fig. 89. 



laying its 



fruiting. 



on account of its 
great tendency to 
wood-growth. 




PRUNmG TO FORM PYRAMIDS. 155 

Although the pyramidal form has become estab- 
lished, this tree would soon grow out of balance if 
neglected. It will require annual pinching and sum- 
mer checking of the leading shoots not only for the 
purpose of restraining them, but to preserve the 
development of the lower branches. 

From neglect or bad pruning, it is not unfrequent 
that trees acquire a growth similar to Fig. 40, which 
is a portrait of a tree in my own grounds. In its first 
pruning, the stem was left too high, and, in conse- 
quence, a long space has occurred at A and B, free 
from radial branches. After some subsequent prun- 
ing, a gourmand, indicated by C, has pushed out 
from near the collai*. 

Another error in pruning is shown at D, where a 
cut was made too far above the bud, or the branch. 
The highest shoot in this tree has abdicated the 
leadership, and a strong rival has puslied up from 
below it. Some of the methods of i-emedying the 
numerous evils in the condition of this tree, without 
shortening it back so severely as to lose three or four 
years in its fruiting, will be noticed. To cover the 
naked space on the stem, the shoots A and B, Fig. 40, 
may be ingrafted by cutting them to a wedge shape, 
at A and B, and fitting them into a notch in the stem, 
made with a chisel, or by removing small sections of 
bark from both the stem and the shoot, and binding 
the two firmly in contact. The gourmand may be 
used, for ingrafting upon the trunk, at G, but when 
not used as a graft, it should be cut at F, in order to 
conceal the trunk with foliage. The branch and part 
of the stem, at D, should be entirely removed, in order 



156 



PBUNING. 



to allow E to become the leader. All the branches 
should be shortened, the upper to three or four inches, 
and the lower to six or eight, and the leader to ten or 
twelve. Fig. 41, represents, at A and B, the incisions 
which are made above a weak bud, or shoot, to check 



Fig. 40. 




Fig. 41. 




the flow of sap, and force it to their development, 
C is the incision made below a strong shoot to check 
its growth. 

It is important in pruning, to cut so near a bud that 



PRUNING TO FORM PYRAMIDS. 



m 



the wound will be within the influence of the sap, 
elaborated by the leaves formed from that bud. If 
cut as in Fig. 42, the wood above the bud being beyond 
the flow of sap, usually dies, and produces a bad effect. 
The cut in Fig. 43 is made so low as to endanger the 
life of the bud, and effect the same bad result, as in 
cutting too high. The true rule for cutting a bud is, 
to make the slope reach no lower than the bottom of 
the bud, and high enough on the side of the shoot 
nearest the bud to clear the top of the latter. Fig. 44 
represents the true cut. 



Fig. 42. 






An irregular form of trees growing on quince roots, 
and resulting from overfruiting, is exhibited by Fig. 
45. The check to wood-growth, caused by the early 
fruitfulness of the tree, resulted in the change of most 
of the buds to fruit-buds. When a period of rest from 
fruiting occurred, and the tree had acquired strength 
for further growth, this was all produced at the top 
of the tree, and thus its balance destroyed. To 
remedy this, the tree may be either shortened at the 
point indicated by the long lines, or the limbs pruned 
at the small cross lines, and the lower part kept from 
fruiting for a year or two. Combined with summer 



158 



PRUNING. 



Fig. 45. 



pinching of the t jp shoots, this last method will restore 
the shape without losing the growth of two or three 
years. 

I am often pained at 
being obliged to cut 
away half a dozen luxu- 
riant shoots, three to five 
feet in length, the growth 
of the preceding sum- 
mer, upon a tree, which, 
by their production, was 
thrown entirely out of 
balance. But most two- 
year-old trees, if previ- 
ously neglected, prove 
too obstinate in their ac- 
quired habit of growth, 
to form easily into pyr- 
amidal shape. The bark 
has become too old for 
buds to break from,with- 
out cutting so low down 
that one may almost 
as well begin with bud- 
ding the stock, thus go- 
ing back to the very foundation of nursery treatment. 

As the fruit-raiser may save several years' labor 
and delay by selecting large trees, it will be seen 
that it is of considerable importance to obtain those 
that have received proper care in the proper time. 
When well-shaped trees, two to four years old, 
cannot be procured, it is better to select maiden 




SUMMER PINCHING. 159 

plants, or those of a single season's growth, as shown 
in Fig. 29. 

SUMMER PINCHING. 

This process consists in checking the growing shoot 
during summer, either by the thumb and linger or the 
knife. Sometimes the soft terminal tuft of leaves 
is pinched entirely off, sometimes a considerable por- 
tion of the shoot is cut away, and occasionally they 
are simply fractured, and left hanging. 

This labor may be performed from the first break- 
ing of the bud to the middle of July, the time for its 
performance being governed by the need for shaping 
the tree. 

As before stated, the perfect formation of a pyramid 
is commenced in the nursery. The plant budded the 
previous year should stand at sufficient distance from 
its fellows to allow its branches to radiate from the 
ground, for a foot on either side, without interference 
from them, l^ear the middle of July, the terminal 
bud should be pinched off as at Fig. 35. The wood, 
now in its succulent condition, heals over at once, and 
no scar remains. 

By the loss of the terminal bud, the sap is dis- 
tributed to the lower buds, and if, as usually occurs, 
radial shoots do not push out, the former are strength- 
ened sufficiently to form strong shoots during the next 
season. The tree, if well grown, is, at the end of the 
first season, fully equal, for forming a pyi^amid, to 
the one exhibited at Fig. 36. By a regular system of 
summer pinching to restrain undue vigor of some of 
the shoots, no great interference with its organism 
need occur to preserve the pyramidal shape through 



160 



PRUNINa. 



all its future growth. I have often seen a difference 
of two years' growth in favor of summer-treated 
trees over those whose pruning was delayed until the 
wood ripened. 

To induce the formation of fruit-buds, summer 
pinching is successfully resorted to. Fig. 46 exhibits 
a twig with wood-buds at A and B, and the soft 
summer growth beyond. If in July this is pinched 
off or only broken to remain hanging, as in Fig. 47, 
the small weak buds at A B will be strongly devel- 
oped, and appear as in this last-mentioned Figure. 
At the swelling of the buds in the next spring, these 
will appear as shown in Fig. 48. In all these Fig- 
ures, the shoot is represented as broken too closely 
to the buds. 



Fig. 46. 



Fig. 47. 



Fig. 48. 




Summer pruning must not, however, be continued 



SUMMER PINCHING. 



161 



so late in the season as to induce an unripened growth. 
When several small shoots have formed from the 
upper buds after pinching, they should be removed 
in the subsequent spring, as they would tend to form 
a tuft of branches on the end of the shoot. 

The treatment of fruit-spurs upon bearing trees 
forms no unimportant part of their management. The 
excrescence remaining at the base of the stem of a 
fruit of the Duchesse d'Angouleme is shown at Fig. 49. 
When this is cut at A, the small buds appearing at the 
base are developed in another year into the condition 
represented by Fig. 50. These fruit-spurs will now, 
if not displaced or crushed in gathering the fruit, 
become permanent, and afford a security for fruitful- 
ness in the tree. Fig. 51 exhibits a cluster of fruii- 
buds on a spur, that has borne several times. 



Fig. 49. 



Fig. 50. 



Fig. 51. 





The rules for summer pruning and pinching may be 
condensed as follows. 

1. To develop wood-buds on the lower part of the 
tree, prune all the branches closely in spring, and 
pinch the upper shoots during summer. If the upper 



162 PRUNING. 

shoots push too strongly, deprive them partially of 
leaves, but allow the lower ones in the vicinity of the 
weak buds to grow. 

2. Allow no useless shoots to absorb the vigor and 
sap of the tree — for every pound of them cut away 
might have been diverted to its proper growth. 

3. To develop a weak branch, cut it back to two or 
three buds in spring, provided the rest of the tree be 
closely pruned and summer pinched, but the weak 
shoot must be allowed to grow unchecked during 
summer. 

4. To check exuberant shoots, they must not be cut 
back severely at the winter-pruning, but summer- 
pinched and partially deprived of leaves. 

5. Allow the strong branches to bear all their fruit, 
but deprive the weak parts of the tree entirely of fruit. 

FORMS OF TRAINING. 

Almost every variety of pear tree exhibits a distinct 
and characteristic growth. This inclination to a par- 
ticular form modifies our control over the tree to 
such an extent as to render it impossible to mold 
some varieties into any of the shapes exhibited in the 
figures. Other varieties acquire the pyramidal shape 
so readily as scarcely to need the restraints of pruning. 

Most of the leading varieties of pear trees can be 
recognized by their characteristic forms and color of 
the bark, almost as readily as by their fruit. The 
light yellow bark and open growth of the Bartlett 
and Duchesse, and the gray, densely-growing shoots 
of the Urbaniste, distinguish each of them as perfectly 
as the forms and colors of their fruits. 



FORMS OF TRAINrN^G. 



163 



Fig. 52 is from a photograph of a Yicar of 
Winkfield, four years planted, which was only pruned 
at the time of its removal from the nursery. 

Fig. 52. 




<^-<^, 



The Urbaniste and Flemish Beauty assume the 
pyramidal shape without shortening, but still differ 
w^idely in their natural structure. 



164: PRUNING. 

Fig. 53 represents a tree, the lower part of which 
has ceased to grow, in consequence of over-fruiting. 
To reduce this to a pyramidal shape, without pruning 
away a very considerable portion of the tree, requires 
judicious pruning. Cut the lower, unnourished 
branches back to three or four inches. Leave the 
remainder until the next spring, when the branches 
extending beyond the lines in the Figure are to be cut 
off; but during the summer, tlie upper and more vigor- 
ous branches are to be checked by pinching, and par- 
tially depriving of leaves, in order to throw the sap 
into the lower ones. This is the true Quenonille. 

Fig. 5i represents a pear tree trained as a column 
— one of those eccentric forms attempted by French 
gardeners, which cannot be recommended. 

ESPALIER AND QUENOUILLE TRAINING. 

Happily for fruit-growers of this country, they are 
not compelled to resort to the laborious, artiticial 
means practiced in other countries fur the production 
of fruit ; but as it may be desirable at some time to 
employ these methods for ornament or local conven- 
ience, they are here given. 

In Espalier training we should commence with the 
first summer's growth from the bud. The terminal 
bud is pinched out in the latter part of June, and 
when lateral shoots push forth, they are cut off on two 
opposite sides, leaving those on the two other sides. 
If these push out regularly, two or three pairs are 
allowed to remain, and the stem cut back to them. 

Tliese are trained to the lattice or wall, and fastened 
in the fall. The next year another pair or two are 



ESPALIER AND QUENOUILLE TRAINING. 165 

Fig. 58. F,g,g4^ 




166 PEUNING. 

produced at the proper distances, and fastened as 
before, guarding, however, against allowing horizontal 
shoots to be produced more rapidly than a strong, 
vigorous growth will permit. 

The term Quenouille is misapplied in fruit-books. 
It is now applied in France only to trees of the form 
represented in Fig. 53. 

Arched training, as shown in Fig. 55, is nearly 
abandoned in France and Belgium. It is generally 
confessed to have produced the most ugly and ill- 
shapen trees imaginable, besides requiring immense 
labor and unremitting care. It consisted in tying 
down the ends of shoots to pegs on the ground, until 
a drooping habit had been produced, or the check of 
sap by the compressure has induced fruit-bearing. 

RULES FOR PRUNING. 

1. Cut near a wood-bud when pruning to perfect 
the shape. 

2. Prune severely in the spring those branches 
that are desired to grow vigorously. 

3. Pinch in summer and partially deprive of leaves 
those branches that grow too vigorously and absorb 
too much sap. 

4. Thin, weakly shoots should either be pruned 
close, or left entire with a terminal bud : the more 
vigorous ones being, at the same time, stopped by 
pinching. 

5. Let the severest pruning be performed on the 
tree when young. 

6. To develop fruit-buds, break, pinch, or twist the 
shoots above the buds intended to be developed. 



ESPALIER AND ARCH TRADflNG. 
Fig. 65. 



167 




168 PRUNING. 

7. Prune when the sap is active, that the wound 
may heal quickly. 

8. When trees are tardy in coming into bearing, 
prune severely in spring, pincli constantly in summer, 
and root-prune in early autumn. 

9. When a tree has been removed, prune off the 
branches in proportion to the loss of roots. 

SEASON FOR PRUNING. 

Mr. Downing recommended winter and fall pruning 
of fruit-trees, without regard to kinds. This is the 
general practice ; but as relates to the Pear, it 
is beginning to be thought erroneous by the best 
pomologists. Wounds made in winter pruning can- 
not heal over until the sap shall deposit the matter 
that ripens into bark and wood. Li the meanwhile, 
the raw cut becom'es dry and checked, the end of the 
branch usually dies dow^n for some distance, and 
requires a new cut in the spring. Tlie best season for 
pruning the Pear is after the buds begin to swell in 
April, until the new leaves are half formed. 

All the wood that requires removal should be 
pruned at this season, to economize the sap before it 
has been wasted in wood growth, that will need to be 
pruned away. Pruning, liowever, beyond the 1st of 
July should be avoided, as it induces a late suc- 
culent growth, that remaining unripened, is subject 
to blight. 

ROOT-PRUNING, AND TfS 7:FFECT ON SHAPE AND FRUITING. 

It has long been known, that an obstinate variety 
growing on tlie pear stock, might be hastened in its 



KOOT-PKUNIISG, AN1> irS EE'Fl^Ol'S. 169 

fruiting, by separating some of the roots, thus cutting 
ofi' the abundant supply of nutriment that increased 
the wood-growth at the expense of fruit formation. 
The first object of this process is, to produce fibrous 
roots, instead of the long, naked ones which support 
the tree ; for fibrous roots alone provide the proper 
sap for forming or sustaining fruit-buds. 

When a root is smoothly separated in the last of 
August or first of September, with a sloping cut from 
the under to the upper surface of the root, the return- 
ing sap forms upon the edges of the cut innumerable 
fibres and rootlets. The tendency to form roots at 
this season from every abrasion beneath the surface 
is so great, that even the young shoots of the Peai- 
will form roots, if half cut through and layered. 

The effect of root-pruning is to render the pear tree 
more manageable; its growth being more equally 
distributed around the tree, instead of assuming the 
rampant form of the gourmand. Most varieties, tardy 
in bearing upon the pear stock, may be hastened six 
or eight years in fruit-bearing, by root-pruning. The 
Dix, Seckel, Beurre, Bosc, and others, that are averse 
to the Quince, by root-pruning may be fruited in four 
or five years. Pear trees, several times root-pruned, 
may be removed with almost absolute certainty of 
success, at almost any age or size ; so that the favorite 
trees of a tenant may be removed from the premises 
he quits, with his furaiture, and the regret at leaving 
objects of care and skill may be entirely avoided. 

Upon this subject, nothing can be said of so mucli 
interest, and worthy of so much attention as the fol- 
lowing from Mr. Kivers, of Sawbridgeport, England. 

a 



170 PEUNING. 

Mr. R., it should be said, confines his remarks entirely 
to the Pear upon the quince stock, while instructions 
for root-pruning generally refers to the Pear on pear 
roots. Mr. Rivers says : 

" I must premise, that handsome and fertile pyramids, more particu- 
larly of some free-bearing varieties, may be reared without this annual, 
biennial, or triennial operation. I have a large plantation of pear trees 
on Quince, which bids fair to make handsome and fertile pyramids, 
yet they have not been root-pruned, neither do I intend to rootrprune 
them. But I wish to impress upon my readers that my principal object 
is to make trees fit for small gardens, and to instruct those who are not 
blessed with a large garden how to keep their trees perfectly under 
control ; and this can best be done by annual, or at least, biennial at- 
tention to their roots ; for if a tree be suffered to grow three or more 
years, and then root-pruned, it will receive a check if the spring be dry, 
and the crop of fruit for one season will be jeopardied. Therefore, those 
who are disincUned to the annual operation, and yet wish to confine the 
growth of their trees within limited grounds, by root-pruning — say once 
in three years — should only operate upon one-third of their trees in one 
season. They will thus save two-thirds in an unchecked leafing state ; 
and those who have ample room and space may pinch their pyramids in 
summer^ and suffer them to grow to the height of fifteen or twenty feet, 
without pruning their roots. I have seen avenues of such trees, in 
Belgiimi, quite imposing. Pyramidal trees on the quince stock (and 
we Avould add, on the pear stock also), when the fruit-garden is small, 
and the real gardening artist feels a pleasure in keeping them in a 
healthy and fruitful state, by perfect control over the roots, should be 
operated upon as follows : A trench should be dug around the tree, 
about eighteen inches from the stem, every autumn, just after the fruit 
is gathered, if the soil be sufficiently moist — if not, it will be better to 
wait till the usual autumnal rains are- fallen, and the roots carefully 
examined, those inclined to perpendicular growth, cut with a spade, 
which must be introduced quite under the tree on all sides, so that no 
root can possibly escape amputation, and all the horizontal roots except 
those that are small and fibrous, shortened with a knife, to within a 
circle eighteen inches from the stem (if they have not spread out to 
this extent, they need not be pruned, but merely brought near the 
surface and spread out), and all brought near the surface as possible, 



RULES FOR PRimiNG. 171 

filling in the trench with compost for the roots to rest on ; the trench 
may then be filled with compost and the mold from an old hot-bed, 
equal parts will answer exceedingly well ; the surface should then be 
covered with half-rotted dung, and the roots left till the following 
autumn brings its annual care. It may be found that, after a few years 
of root-pruning, the circumferential mass of fibres will have become too 
matted, and that some of the roots are bare of fibres toward the stem. 
This will cause them to give out fibres, so that the entire circle of three 
or more feet around the tree is full of fibrous roots near the surface, 
waiting with open mouths for the nourishment annually given to them 
by surface-dressing and liquid manures. Handsome pyramidal trees 
may be produced by shortening the shoots in the summer, and if they 
are inclined to grow too vigorously, occasional (say biennial or triennial) 
root-pruning by the spade, will be sufficient." 

I here introduce Mr. Rivers' plan of root-pruning, 
although quite unadapted to our necessities, in order 
that the reader may have an opportunity of observing 
what is called high cultivation. 

It should be understood by every one that reads this 
article, that the requisites for fonning fruit-spurs are, 
fibrous roots well supplied with nutriment. While 
the trees are making only long cane-like roots, there 
will be no supply of sufficiently-digested pabulum for 
fruit. 

The intention of most cultivators in this country 
being to produce large pyramids, the annual pruning 
of roots would be an unnecessary labor, especially on 
the quince stock. On the pear stock, biennial root- 
pruning, by thrusting down a spade, after having dug 
a trench one spade deep, at the proper distance from 
the stem, is sufficient. One other variation from Mr. 
Rivers' recommendations is the time in which this 
root-pruning is to be performed. If it is delayed until 
all fruit is gathered, the Vicar and the Winter varie- 



172 PRUNING. 

ties would lose the benefit of the descending and root- 
forming sap when the leaf is ripening. On the quince 
stock we have not often found that pear trees need 
root-pruning, since the great difiicultj is to restrain 
their fruit-bearing tendency. The great cause of 
failure in cultivating these trees is their enormous 
overbearing, producing one great crop, and then re- 
maining unhealthy, exhausted, and stinted for several 
years. 

But, we repeat, in order to give emphasis to the 
truth, that root-pruning is quite necessary to the per- 
fection of the pyramid form, unless the tree has had 
its training commenced with the young shoot from 
the bud. 



PAKT YI.— DISEASES OF THE PEAK. 

The Pear has several times in this country been 
subject to most fatal epidemics. Men and animals 
are not alone the victims of pestilence, but Nature 
suffers these violent perturbations through all her 
dominions. It is not surprising that the sudden loss 
of one tenth of a fine pear orchard should discourage 
and alarm the fruit-grower ; still he ought not to forget 
that its cause is exceptional, and will pass away. 
These diseases, though prevailing for several seasons 
in succession, occur only at long intervals ; and the 
period of a disease being terminated, we may usually 
calculate upon exemption from it for a considerable 
time. 

WINTER, OR FROZEN SAP BLIGHT. 

The diseases of the Pear, known by Pomologists as 
Leaf-Blight, Summer-Blight, Winter-Blight, Insect- 
Blight, and Frozen-Sap-Blight, are generally, at pre- 
sent, recognized under the two latter terms, though 
we think the leaf-blight an entirely distinct disease. 
There has been so much speculation upon the causes 
of Winter or Frozen Swp Blighty and so many reme- 
dies recommended, that we are not prepared to adopt 
any of the theories in explanation of it, or any nos- 
trum as a specific. 

The pear tree is a greedy absorber of fluids, and 
( 173 > 



174 DISEASES OF THE PEAK. 

when the warm rains of September excite its absorb- 
ents, the gourmand drinks up large quantities of 
nutriment, and a late and rapid growth of shoots is 
formed. In these succulent and unripe growths, the 
sap is retained without that vitality of leaf which will 
effect its maturity and assimilation, being thin and 
watery, and not sufficiently matured to enable it to 
resist the frost, and death ensues. In the plant as 
well as the animal, great length of time often elapses 
before the poison affects the whole system and causes 
death. It is not unfrequent that the tree, poisoned 
in autumn, survives till the July following. The bark 
of the trunk and principal limbs exhibits black spots ; 
and on cutting into them, the bark and wood, for some 
distance beneath, are found quite dead and black. 

The only remedy is, to cut away at once all of the 
tree that is affected, cutting below the lowest spot. 
But few trees attacked with this disease will be of 
much value, even with the best treatment that can be 
given them. Out of forty trees, six or eiglit feet high, 
thus affected in one season, we succeeded in saving 
the stumps, two feet high, of only eight or ten. These 
trees had been brought from a distance, and planted 
the fall preceding the attack, and exhibited by their 
large, thrifty shoots, that rapid, unripe growth above 
mentioned. 

The most successful means of saving trees from the 
ravages of this disease is to avoid its attack. The 
cause being late and unripe growth, it most frequently 
occurs on over-rich and damp soils, retentive of water, 
and abounding in vegetable and animal matter. To 
remove the excess of water, the best, and indeed the 



WINTER, OR FROZEN SAP BLIGHT. 175 

only means, is draining ; the surplus rank vegetable 
and animal matter must be neutralized or decomposed 
by the application of alkaline substances — ashes, lime, 
marl, &c., which, as all experience shows, insure by 
their direct influence on the sap, a short, stocky, and 
well-ripened growth. Fifty bushels of lime, and half 
that quantity of ashes, scattered over an acre, and 
worked in with the plow, is an almost certain pre- 
ventive of this disease, if previously well drained. 

A strong evidence in support of this theory, is 
the fact, that this blight lias never been known to 
originate on the dry sandy loam of Long Island, not 
even with heavy manuring ; the drought of midsunniier 
always ripening the shoots so completely, that the 
leaves fall a month before frosts commence. 

If the character of the season and the continued 
growth of the trees, indicated by fresh green leaves 
and lengthening shoots, late in the fall, warn the cul- 
tivator of danger from this disease, he should remove 
the earth from the collar of the tree, down to the first 
roots, and around for some distance. This exposure 
will check the tendency of the roots to absorb more 
nutriment, and of course arrest the growth. The same 
result may be gained by root-pruning, whenever the 
other method is not convenient, or proves insufficient. 

This disease, the most formidable that attacks the 
Pear, is distinguished by certain peculiar signs : 

1. At the time of winter or spring pruning, by a 
thick clammy sap flowing slowly from the wounds 
— while a healthy tree exhibits a fresh, clean cut. 

2. By the appearance, late in spring, of dead patches 
of bark on the trunk and limbs. This, however, is 



176 DISEASES OF THE PEAK. 

sometimes the consequence of overbearing, in wliich 
case, the dead bark will often cover the living and 
most healthy wood and bark ; yet this peculiarity is 
frequently the first stage of the disease. 

3. By the extremities of the shoots in early summer 
shrivelling, turning black, and perishing suddenly 
"When these are instantly cut away for some distance 
below the diseased parts, the tree may often be saved ; 
but if the dead patches of bark, above mentioned, 
first make their appearance, the case is critical. 

THE INSECT-BLIGHT. 

Tlie insect causing this blight is known among po- 
mologists as the Scolytus pyri^ and is one of the most 
minute of our numerous enemies. 

In July or August it perforates shoots of sometimes 
two seasons' grow^th, and deposits its Qgg. The suc- 
ceeding June or July, the branch is observed to wither 
and turn suddenly brown. The disease seldom travels 
below the point attacked, and if the part be removed 
immediately, is directly checked. The insect engen- 
dered near a bud eats its way to the pith, and there, 
by feeding upon the sap-vessels, destroys the organ- 
ism that supplies life to the upper shoot. At the 
first appearance of the ravages of the insect, all the 
branches aifected should be cut and burned — the 
attack must be sudden and energetic. 

THE LEAF-BLIGHT. 

This disease is indicated by a sudden spotting and 
premature ripening of many of the leaves. The 
growth is checked for a time, and if the attack is long- 



INSECT-BLIGHT LEAF-BLIGHT. 177 

continued, or wide-spread, the fruit is lessened in size, 
and sometimes refuses to ripen. It is only serious, 
when appearing upon Pear seedlings, as it checks 
their growth, and prevents their being budded during 
the season of its attack. 

It is very probable that the winter-killing of seed- 
lings results in great measure from the previous feeble 
growth, as the roots produced are in exact proportion 
to the quantity of leaves, and the active vitality of the 
leaves being destroyed, the roots are too feebly devel- 
oped to retain their hold in the soil. A curious fact 
in the history of this disease is, its confining its attacks 
almost entirely to seedlings and wild pears. A graft 
or bud of the finer varieties, of the greatest luxuriance 
of foliage, may not exhibit a single symptom of this 
disease, while the leaves of the stock will be entirely 
blackened. Its approach may be looked for, when- 
ever warm and abundant rains are succeeded by hot, 
bleaching sunshine. The leaves of pear seedlings 
being very succulent, and in such a season as just 
described, accustomed to a moist atmosphere and a 
shaded sky, are not prepared for the great change, 
and consequently are scorched and blackened. When 
occurring in the seed-bed, I do not doubt that the 
close planting of the young trees occasions this result. 



PART YH.— INSECTS mJURIOUS TO THE 
PEAR. 

The Scolytus pyri^ already mentioned, is a verj 
minute beetle, not much larger than a flea. It punc- 
tures the young wood of the pear shoots, and deposits 
there its eggs. It is the larva of this insect that 
accomplishes the mischief. It is thus described by 
Downing : "The beetle is a deep brown, with legs of 
a paler color ; its thorax is short, convex, rough in 
front, and covered with erect bristles. The wing 
covers are marked with rows of punctured points, 
between which are also rows of bristles, and they 
appear cut off very obliquely behind." The larva 
completes its change by June or July, and gnaws its 
way through the bark, leaving a small round punc- 
ture. 

THE SCALE INSECT. 

This abominable and prolific nuisance is insignificant 
in appearance, but formidable in mischief. Trees of 
clean, smooth bark, sometimes in the single month of 
September, become so foul with this insect as to 
appear covered with bran-scales. These scales are 
not the insects, but cover small reddish cocculi, that 
when crushed with the finger-nail leave a spot of 
blood. They feed upon the more sluggish juices of 
the trunk and limbs. In a short time the tree becomes 
( X78 ) 



THE SCALE-mSECT. 179 

SO infested with them, that the most vigorous efforts 
must be exerted to clear it of the enemy. Some 
of my trees had, by neglect, become so badly 
affected, that I saw no remedy would preserve them, 
and was compelled to cut them down. When the 
cocci are washed away, the bark appears rough and 
blotched, and presents a diseased appearance. 

Washes. — A solution of soda, or potash in water, 
not stronger than one pound of soda to one gallon of 
water, or one pound of potash to two gallons of water, 
is efficacious. But washes of this strength must not 
be applied to trees in foliage. 

Whale-oil soap, dissolved at the rate of one pound 
to three or four gallons of water, is a most effective 
wash, and the efficiency is increased when the soap is 
dissolved in a decoction of refuse tobacco. Camphc)!- 
is sometimes added ; but this gum is somewhat costly. 
The wasli of whale-oil soap may be used stronger, if 
applied when the leaves have fallen. 

For the following, I am indebted to the pen and 
pencil of Mr. A. O. Moore. 

*' If in the month of October the vigilant cultivator scrutinizes lii^s 
young pear trees, he may be surprised at finding many of them 
strangely covered, on trunk and limbs, with a white substance, which ot 
first may seem to be a mold or mildew, such as would be engendercl 
by a damp situation. Upon attempting to scrape this off", a clarc- 
colored liquid will smear the stem as if with blood. A close examina- 
tion will show that this white substance is composed of small paper- 
like scales. If a scale is removed carefully so as to expose the undi r 
surface, it will at this season be found to cover a minute dark-ro'l 
object, surrounded by yet smaller dust-like atoms. This is as far in onr 
investigation as the unaided vision will carry us. A good microscoj-ic 
lens will, however, reveal a family composed of a mother (as seen at 



ISO INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE PEAR. 

Fig. 57) with her numerous unhatched progeny, consisting of from 
twenty to fifty eggs — the breaking of which latter furnished the red 
fluid before noticed. After the eggs have been deposited, the body of 

Fig. 66. 




Fig. 66 represents a Pear branch attacked by the Bark-Louse. The insect being 
concealed under the white scales. 

Fig. 57 represents the under side of one of the scales, with the eggs adhering, 
greatly magnified. 

the female contracts, as shown in Fig. 57. Previous to the first of Octo- 
ber, I have found the insect under the scale without the <*ggs, but by 
arranging the light so as to produce a slightly transparent effect, the 
eggs may then be seen within the body of the parent, as at Fig. 58. 



THE SCALE-INSECT. 



181 



Fig. 68. 




" At this time the insect appears almost lifeless, and 
probably it has already committed aU the injury to 
the tree it is capable of inflicting : this injury con- 
sists in the abstraction of the juices of the tree. 
Around each minute paper domicU may be seen a 
discolored spot. It is not unusual to see a tree of 
eight or ten feet in height with every part of the 
stem and many of its branches whitened by this 
injurious insect. No tree thus attacked can be healthy. 

" Trees situated in grass lands, or otherwise neglect- 
ed, peculiarly invite this sloven's pest. Slow-growing 
varieties of the Pear are more subject to it than the 
rapid growing kinds. 

" We will now consider the means of destroying 
this troublesome insect. It is probable that the time 
in which the injury is committed is during the sum- 
mer months, although the insect, being not then 
invested with its paper-like covering, can only be discovered with diffi- 
culty. The practice of washing the trunk and main branches of fruit- 
trees with a mixture of soft-soap and water, one part of the former to 
two of the latter, applied with a coarse cloth, using considerable fric- 
tion, can not be too highly recommended for the health and general 
thriftiness of the orchard. This application should be made in the 
spring, before the swelling of the buds, and again in early June — this 
time, however, greater care is necessary to avoid injury to the young 
shoots. The young insect is then about commencing its summer depre- 
dations, and all that escaped the spring washing may be easily destroyed. 

" Where soft-soap can not be obtained, common hard-soap may be 
used instead ; half a pound dissolved in two gallons of hot water. 
Harris recommends a solution of two pounds of potash in seven quarts 
of water, or a pickle consisting of a quart of common salt in two gal- 
lons of water. No preparation, however, I believe to be so safe and 
efficacious as the one first mentioned. 

" Whale-oil soap, or even common hard-soap, placed in the ' crotch 
of the principal branches, and allowed to remain until washed down 
gradually by the rains, will l)e found excellent for the general health 
of the tree, and prevent the attacks of this and many other insects. 



* Fig. 3 is a magnified view of the Female Bark-Louse before depositiiyr her eggs. 



182 INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE PEAK. 

" Another species of the coccus has lately been brought to my notice, 
which seems to affect the Apple and the Pear in the same manner as 
the above, and is sometimes found upon the same tree. It has, instead 
of the white paper-like covering, a hard coriacious scale, of narrower 
and longer shape, and the eggs are pearly white instead of red. I fear 
that where this insect exists, it may prove a more troublesome enemy 
than the white scale, as its hard covering forms a more effective protp'^- 
tion against the wash recommended." 

After tlie coccus has acquired its shell, a simple 
washing will not remove it. It must be scrubbed 
off with considerable force, and in bad cases, with sand 
and soap. 

THE SLUG. 

The pear-slug is another insignificant, but trouble- 
some enemy. This slimy and disagreable fellow 
attaches himself to the upper part of the leaf, in Junr 
or July. 

It is about half an inch long, and somewhat resem- 
bles a snail. It quickly devours all the succulent 
portion of the leaf, the skeleton of which remains 
upon the tree, and appears as if scorched with fire. 
Growth is stopped at once, and what fruit has set, 
never attains any considerable size. Dust, lime, ashes, 
and other substances, that will attach to the slime of 
the insect, will, if thrown upon the leaves where it is 
feeding, soon detach his hold, and cause him to fall off 
and die. Soapsuds, potash-water (made with six or 
eight gallons of water to a pound of potash), or strong 
tobacco-water, will speedily destroy this insect. 

I am happy to be able to add the result of some 
investigations into the habits of this insect by Mr. A. 
O. Moore : 

" The insect which we familiarly call the Pear Slug {Selandria cerasiy) 



THE SLUG. 



183 



represented in Fig. 69 is, at the period of its life when generally noticed 
by the cultivator, a greenish-black, club-shaped worm, with a thick 
rounded anterior extremity, and tapering towards the posterior. It is 
covered with a semi-transparent coat of slime, which exudes from the 
body, and, in the hottest sunshine, does not become hard or dry. 

" While resting undisturbed upon the leaf, the tail or last segment ot 
the body is sUghtly raised. At its greatest size, the worm is about half 
an inch in length ; it is very sluggish in its habits, being rarely seen to 
move. 

" The injury consists in its eating the upper skin of the leaf, while the 

Fig. 59. 




Fig. 59. The Pear-Slug full grown. The Leaf with its upper surface partially 
destroyed, (a.) The Egg deposited upon the upper surface of the lea£ 

lower skin and the veins are untouched ; the leaves immediately assume 
a brown, unsightly appearance, while the proper function of the leaf, 
the elaboration of the sap, is almost entirely obstructed, 

"Like all other insects, its existence may be divided into four stages : 
First, the Egg ; second, the Larva^ or worm state, which is peculiarly 
its eating and growing period ; third, the Pupa, or dormant state ; 



184: INSECTS INJURIOUS TO THE PEAR. 

fourth, the Imago, which is the perfect or winged state. In this last 
stage only are the differences of sex discernible ; and by the Fly, or 
perfect insect, the eggs are deposited which reproduce the brood of 
destructive worms. 

"This fly of the Pear Slug is described as a four-winged Hymenopter- 
ous (or wasp-Uke) insect, of a glossy black color. The wings are some- 
what convex on the upper side, and slightly wrinkled, transparent, 
reflecting the colors of the rainbow, the anterior pair having a smoky 
band across them. The legs are tipped with a dull yellow color. The 
body of the female measures rather more than a fifth of an inch 
in length, that of the male is smaller. They make their appearance 
twice during the summer, the first time about the end of May or the 
first of June, the second appearance about the latter end of July. On 
each occasion they lay their eggs, and disappear in about three weeks. 

Fig. 60. 




Fig. 60. The Perfect Insect or Fly of the Pear Slug— magnified. 'The croaa lines 
represent the natural size. 

" The slug fly deposits its eggs singly on the upper surface of the most 
matured leaves, covering it with a frothy, white, varnish-like mucilage, 
which surrounds it, and serves at once to attach it to the leaf, and to 
exclude the atmosphere. Tlie small spot a on the leaf, Fig, 59, repre- 
sents the size and form of the egg, which is seen as a dark center in the 
middle of a white spot. Fig. 61 represents the egg magnified, and the 
worm or young slug within the semi-transparent shell. Fig. 62 exhibits 
the egg also magnified, after the insect has emerged. 

"When first hatched, the young slug is white, andean with difficulty 
be discerned by the naked eye ; it commences immediately to puncture 
with small holes the surface of the leaf upon which it is produced. It 



-^ 



THE SLUG. 



185 



soon acquires a covering of greenish-black slime, and is said by Harris 
to live as a worm twenty-six days, shedding its skin during that period 

Fig. 61. Fig. 62. 




Fig. 61. 
Fig. 62. 



The Egg magnified, with the Embryo Slug seen through the shell. 
The Egg empty after the Slug has escaped — magnified. 



five times. Fig. 63 gives its appearance after it has shed its skin for the 
last time, with the forsaken skin lying near it. It is now much changed 
in color, being a brown-yellow, and somewhat diminished in size. In 
a few hours it falls to the ground, and immediately seeks to burrow into 
the soil. Descending to the depth of several inches, it forms a cocoon 
with a shiny brown interior surface, and a rough exterior, with 
grains of earth adhering. Fig. 64 shows a broken cocoon with the 



Fig. 63. 



Fig. 64. 



Fig. 65. 



Fig. 63. (a) The Slug, after shedding its skin the last time. (&) The skin left upon 
the leaf. 

Fig. 64. (f.) The Cocoon from which the insect has been prematurely removed. 
(d) The Slug after having commenced its change to the fly state. 

Fig. 65. The Ichneumon Fly magnified ; supposed to be of the species Encyrtus, 
taken from the egg of the slug. 

insect, now much further diminished in size, taken out. This is the 
Pupa or dormant state. It remains in the earth after its first appear- 
ance sixteen days, when it comes forth as the perfect insect. Fig. 60/. 
The second brood remain in their subterranean retreat until the suc- 
ceeding spring. 

" We will now consider the means for preventing or palliating the 
injury resulting from the attacks of the pear-slug. I would first remark, 
that the slug is found in much greater abundance on weakly growing 
trees than on those of strong and rapid growth. This fact points to 



186 INSECTS mJTJKIOUS TO THE PEAE. 

the first and fundamental remedy, the securing of healthy trees, and by 
the proper enrichment and preparation of the soil, of a thrifty and 
uniform growth. Nature has provided a minute but formidable enemy 
to the slug, which serves very materially to check its increase. This 
enemy is a species of ichneumon fly, which is also of the wasp family. 
Soon after the slug fly has deposited its egg on the leaf, the ichneumon 
deposits its egg within the shell of the former, which developing to a 
minute grub before the time for the hatching of the slug worm, feeds 
upon the embryo slug, passing the whole period of its existence as a 
worm, and even undergoing the succeeding transformation through the 
pupa state, within the small space afforded by the egg of the slug, the 
natural size of which may be seen at a, Fig. 58. 

" Fig. 65 exhibits the ichneumon fly as found in the egg of the pear- 
slug, nearly ready to emerge as a perfect insect. 

" The application, at the proper time, of lime in a dry, or powdered 
state, while the leaves are wet with rain or dew, will prove effectual in 
destroying the egg before it is hatched, or the slug during the time of its 
depredations. If the number of trees to be treated is large, it will only 
be necessary to apply the remedy twice during the season, provided 
the proper stage of the insect's development is chosen. This should 
be as soon as possible after the eggs are all hatched, which is usually 
about the first of July with the first brood, and the first of September 
with the second brood. If applied earUer than the times mentioned, 
some of the eggs will not have hatched, in which case it requires much 
greater care and a larger quantity of lime ; or if applied much later, 
many of them will have undergone their transformation into the pupa 
state, and therefore be beyond our reach. I have found this remedy 
always eflScacious, and even plaster of Paris, ashes, or dust from the 
road, applied to the slimy coat of the slug, will cause it to sicken and 
die." " A. 0. MOORE." 

" Nev^t York, 140 Fulton Street, Oct., 1857." 

The caterpillar, canker-worm, and apple-worm, 
which increase in size and number with such rapidity, 
are easily destroyed when attacked in time. The web 
must be crushed at its first appearance. The best 
method is not always the most pleasant ; but all the 
operations of horticulture are not equally agreeable. 



CATEEPELLAR CANKER-WORM APPLE-WORM. 1 87 

A thick buckskin glove should be worn ; and with the 
hand thus protected, the nest should be grasped and 
crushed — being careful to press firmly all the crevices 
of the bark to destroy every individual. 

There is but one method better, and this is to look 
carefully over the trees several times after the leaves 
have fallen ; gather every leaf curled and gummed 
to the tree, and every circlet of whitish eggs attached 
to a limb, and put them in the fire. 

Tlie most eftective and convenient allies in destroy- 
ing insects are, birds and dung-hill fowls. When the 
latter are fed at distant and different spots about the 
pear grounds, they acquire a habit of wandering 
among the trees, and although generally shy of 
attacking caterpillars, yet their quick eyes no sooner 
detect a miller, a fly, or a beetle, about to lay eggs for 
an innumerable generation, than the hapless insect is 
deposited in the crop of some of tlie galUnacece. 
"Wasps, flies, and moths are the parents of rapidly- 
increasing tribes, and by destroying one of them, we 
rid ourselves of thousands. Wide-mouthed vials con- 
taining molasses, and hung in the branches of trees, 
will catch large numbers : small bright fires made in 
various parts of the fruit-grounds, during the nights 
of June and July, will attract and destroy many. 



PAET Yin.— VARIETIES. 

coirDrnoNS which affect the quality of the FBUri. 

Great diversity of opinion prevails in regard to the excellence of 
every variety of the Pear. This arises from the different character- 
istics of the fruit when modified by circumstances. Some of the 
wnditions unfavorable to the proper development of the fruit are : 

First. The fruit of some varieties is small, astringent and 
insipid, while the trees are young, but large, delicious, and high- 
flavored, when the trees become older. 

Second. The fruit may have remained too long upon the tree. 
Many kinds are nearly worthless unless picked as soon as the stem 
will cleave easily from the spur without breaking, and ripened 
with protection from the air and light. They then become nearly 
perfect. 

Third. Some varieties are only second-rate when grown on the 
pear stock, but when grown on the Quince, are ranked as high as 
" best " 

Fourth. Soils have great influence on the quality of Pears , 
incompatibility of soil often ruining the fruit of the best varieties. 

Thus, from lack of knowledge of these conditions, many falla- 
cious opinions have been formed, and much disappointment has 
followed the attempts to cultivate varieties which, though " first 
rate" in their original position, in other places do not find their 
special requirements. 

TERMS RELATING TO THE QUALITY, SHAPE, &C. 

Best., Pears that are of fine texture, melting, very juicy, and 
high flavored and the term is applied only to those that possess 
all the qualities denoted by buttery, melting, juicy, and high- 
flavored. 

( 188 ) 



QUALITIES FOK MARKET CULTIVATION. 189 

Very good, denotes varieties that possess all but one of the above 
qualities in a high degree. 

Good, is applied to those that lack some of the above qualities, 
or possess one or two of them in only a moderate degree. 

Fair, indicates that the varieties have some claim to attention, 
but not enough to entitle it to a high rank. 

Poor, designates those entirely unworthy of cultivation. 

Pyriform, denotes the fruit with the small end at the stem, or 
approaching in form a cone. 

Acute Pyriform, fruit tapering to a point at the stem, like the 
Beurre Bosc. 

Obtuse Pyriform, the small end rather blunt at the stem, like the 
Bartlett. 

Depressed Pyriform, the sides immediately below the stem 
sunken, as if forming an incipient neck. 

Long Pyriform, neck very long, as in the Dix. 

Obovate, denotes an egg shape, like that of the Vergalieu. 

Turbinate, is roundish, but approaching a point at the stem. 

Oblate, flattened at the ends like the Bergamots. 

Pyramidal, regularly increasing in size from the base to the stem. 

Large, a size ranging from the Bartlett to the Duchesse. •• 

Small, ranging between the Seckel and Washington. 

Medium, the size of the Lawrence and Vergalieu. 

Calyx, the flower end, or the leaves of the flower which remain 
on the fruit. 

QUALITIES REQUIRED FOR MARKET CULTIVATION. 

In this selection of varieties, it has been the writer's purpose to 
include none which were of doubtful value, and which have not 
been proved, by the most ample experience, to be suited to general 
cultivation. The list is carefully made from comparisons of the 
experience of the best pomologists, as well as of ordinary cultivat- 
ors, from Maine to Georgia, from the lists of Pomological 
Societies, and from the writer's personal experience and observation. 
The rules observed in the formation of this list are : 

First. The tree must be hardy, able to withstand severe winters, 
a strong, vigorous grower, and not liable to crack in the bark, or 
to blight. 



190 VARIETIES. 

Second. The fruit must be of fair size, and if not of first-rate 
quality, must be large, and handsomely colored. The only excep- 
tions are in favor of the long known and popular varieties. 

Third. The variety must be prolific, and come early into bear- 
ing. The only exceptions are those admitted by the next rule. 

Fourth. The trees must have considerable longevity, and be not 
easily exhausted by overbearing. 

Fifth. Of the varieties grown on the Quince, only those are 
admitted which an experience of ten years, at least, has proved 
to possess great afiinity for that stock, to acquire thereby higher 
flavor, greater size, and to come considerably earlier into bearing. 

Sixth. No kind is admitted upon the list, whatever may be its 
excellence of flavor, size, or color, if it cracks, cankers, or rots at 
the core. 



VARIETIES FOR MARKET CULTIVATION, TO 
BE GROWN ON PEAR STOCKS. 

Most of the kinds recommended for growing on pear-stocks may 
be grown on the Quince : but as their fruit is not materially im- 
proved in size and flavor, and as they sometimes fail on that 
stock, they are placed in the list for pear-stocks. 



Bartlett. 
■Williams. | Williams' Bon Chrfetloii. 

riBBT TO FIFTBBNTH 8EPTKMBEK. 

While this beautiful and excellent fruit is not allowed by ama- 
teurs to take the first rank, it possesses qualities which have se- 
cured to it high esteem, and have made it the most popular variety 
in this country, since the decline of the Vergalieu, and it is there- 
fore to be recommended for profitable cultivation. 



FOR MABKET CULTIVATION ON PEAR. 191 

It was originally found in Berkshire, England, in 1770, and 

brought to Roxbury, Mass., in 1797, under the name of Williams' 

Bou Chretifin. ^ ^ 

Fig.6e. 




Both in France and England it was but little esteemed, and it 



192 VARIETIES. 

affords a striking instance of the fallibility of any standard of taste; 
for, while many consider it unsurpassed, not a few regard it as 
inferior. 

The chief difficulty in growing it results from its precocious and 
too abundant fruitfulness. The tree coming into bearing at four 
or five years from the bud on its own roots, is often the first time 
so overloaded with fruit, that its growth is checked for several 
years, and thus it fails to attain fair size in many years. 

On the Quince, the Bartlett is the most objectionable variety on 
our catalogue. It grows vigorously for two or three years, till 
fruiting commences, and then, if it bears abundantly, it perishes 
soon after ; and even if carefully managed, and fruit-thinned, it 
rarely attains to a vigorous condition. The natural growth of the 
Bartlett, unchecked by fruit-bearing, is strong and vigorous ; the 
shoots exhibit a peculiar equality of size throughout their entire 
length, ending abruptly and bluntly. 

As a market pear, it has no superior, taking into consideration 
all its qualities — its early bearing, its great productiveness, and 
regularity, the fair size and bright lemon tint of its fruit, its melt- 
ing, buttery flavor, and its universal popularity. The fruit pos- 
sesses a peculiar musky aroma, which somewhat affects the taste. 
The pears exhibit a remarkable uniformity of excellence. There 
is not that inequality in the product of a tree, that is found in 
some varieties — a part very good and a part very poor. 

The fruit may be picked when quite green^ and hard, trans- 
ported long distances without injury, and still ripen with perfect 
flavor and high color. The Bartlett has, however, some defects. 
It is more subject to blight than most other varieties — a consequence 
of its strong, succulent, protracted growth. It cannot be grown 
on the Quince with success. Its fruit ripens when other fruit is 
most abundant ; all the late summer and early autumn fruits dis- 
puting the market with it. But it has the advantage of producing 
good crops every year. 

The French make it succeed much better than others on the 
Quince, and they propagate it on that stock largely. Having a 
large number grown on the Quince sent me one spring from France, 
by mistake, I planted one hundred and fifty — then ordinar>'- sized 



FOB MARKET CULTIVATION ON PEAE. 



193 



nursery trees — closely together, and allowed them to fruit the 
next year. They produced thirteen bushels of handsome fruit, 
which 1 thought compensated for the death of half of the trees the 
next season. 





Belle Epine Dumas. 


Epine Dumas. 
Dumas. 
Du Eachois. 


Dumas de Eochefort. 
" de Limoges. 
" de Eochechouait 




OOTOBBK. 




Fig. 67. 




194 VARIETIES. 

This pear, when more fully known, must attain a very great 
popularity. Its great beauty is only equalled by its excellence. 
The tree is vigorous, hardy, and productive^ and has the remark- 
able peculiarity of producing its fruit in the centre around the 
body, seldom bearing on wood less than three years old. 

The fruit is of medium size, obovate pyriform, very smooth- 
skinned, and free from stain or rust, ripening to a light, but rich 
greenish yellow, and full of a sparkling, champagne-flavored juice, 
melting, but not quite buttery. 

The number of its synonyms is indicative of its wide-spread 
reputation in Europe, and we believe it will excel in this country, 
as it is one of the very few varieties that have improved by im- 
migration. 

On the Quince, it is a stocky, vigorous grower, but forms the 
weakest union of all the varieties, not excepting the Bartlett. 
The pear-stock is decidedly preferable for this variety. I have 
not been able to detect any great change in the flavor produced 
by growing on Quince, but it thus comes earlier to bearing, and is 
more productive while young. 



Belle Lucrative. 

Bergamotte Luc. I Seigneur d'Esperin. 

Beurre Luc. Fondante d'Automne, 

Bergamotte Fi6v^e. | Groseilliere. 

OOTOBEE. 

A prolific variety, of great beauty, and of such excellence of 
flavor as to obtain the highest praise from all pomologists. The 
beauty of the fruit, well exposed to the sun, excites extravagant 
admiration. The rich gold ground is irregularly mottled and 
striped with red and purplish shades. The fruit, somewhat vari- 
able, has a mean size, about equal to the Virgalieu ; its shape is 
uniformly roundish obovate, quite broad at base in proportion to its 
height. The calyx is rather small, set in a broad, shallow basin; 
the stem is little more than an inch in length, stout, often fleshy. 

I think this fruit combines the highest excellences of flavor and 
texture. It is entirely melting, with a sugary, vinous flavor, and 
most abundant juice, a thin skin, and small core. 



FOR MARKET CULTIVATION ON PEAR. 



195 



Some pomologists complain of its slow growth and unhealthi- 
ness on the Quince ; but when properly treated, I have been abun- 
dantly satisfied with its vigor and healthfulness. 

Fig. 68. 




The fruit is borne in clusters, the tree is very productive, thin- 
ning being often necessary to prevent injury from over-bearing. 



196 



VAKIETTES. 



Bloodgood, 



or J U L T. 



This variety originated on Long Island, and was named from 
the proprietor of the Bloodgood Nurseries, and considered by him 
a seedling. 

It is the most gene- ^ig* 69. 

rally liked and cultivat- 
ed of the early pears, 
being one of the very 
few that have high fla- 
vor. Some, however, 
give a higher place to 
the Julienne, the Ros- 
tiezer, and Dearborn's 
Seedling; but, after a 
comparison of the excel- 
lences of all, I consider 
the Bloodgood the most 
profitable market early 
pear. The tree is vig- 
orous and hardy, of a 
peculiar stout,fine-look- 
ing growth, with short 
joints, and a reddish 
brown color. It comes 
into bearing early, and 
is productive. 

The fruit must be ga- 
thered before ripening, and matured under cover. It is .small, 
and of a thick turbinate form. The skin becomes yellow in ripen- 
ing, with russet on one side. Stem moderately long, curved, 
slender, and brown, the flesh extending up upon it. It is quite 
melting when well ripened, with the most perfumed and aromatic 
flavor of all early pears. 




^ ^ 



FOE MARKET CULTIVATION ON PEAR. 



197 



BUFFAM. 



It seems unaccountable, that so valuable a variety as this 

should be so much 

Fig. TOt 
neglected. I am 

acquainted with an 
orchard of this fruit 
that has borne reg- 
ularly for more than 
twen<^- years, yield- 
ing enormous crops. 
This variety is 
native of Rhode Is- 
land ; it has a cha- 
racteristic, upright 
growth, the branch- 
es shooting up al- 
most parallel with 
the body. 

The fruit is beau- 
tiful, on one side of 
a dull red, shading 
to yellowish green 
on the other ; ordi- 
narily, somewhat 
smaller than the 
Vergalieu, — but 
when thinned, of 
equal size, growing 
in long, rope-like 

clusters ; and when in perfection, delicious with abundant sweet 
juice, peculiarly aromatic — often as good, I think, as the Seckel 
or Vergalieu, but tending to mealiness when over-ripe. 




198 



VARIETIES, 



Columbia. 

OVBMBBE TO JANirABY, 

Fig. 71. 




This variety originated in Westchester County, N Y Sup. 
sed to be from seedlings planted by the French Huguenots. Its 



FOR MARKET CULTIVATION — ON PEAK. 199 

growth is upright, not unlike the Dix, shoots strong and vigorous, 
of a yellowish brown. The tree is hardy, grows rapidly, and is 
very productive. On account of the long slim stem, and the weight 
of the pears, they are liable to be blown off, before maturing, by 
high winds. The trees should, consequently, be trained low. 

The fruit is large, obovate pyriform, but broadest in the centre. 
The skin is quite smooth, of a dusky green before ripening, after- 
wards of a greenish yellow, and often golden. Stem set somewhat 
to one side. 

The fruit is very juicy, of rich, pleasant flavor, when well ripened 
— requiring less care in ripening than most others, and although 
not melting, and often coarse, is still one of the best market varie- 
ties. Its keeping qualities constitute an important excellence. I 
have seen this fruit in the windows of fruit-shops as late as the 
middle of January, ripening up to nearly first-rate flavor without 
care. 

It is a favorite with marketmen, on account of remaining so 
long in perfection, its freedom from rot, its fair skin, and the high 
price obtained for it near the holidays. At that season, it is often 
sold for two dollars per dozen. While there are many wintei 
pears of higher quality, the Columbia has hitherto stood the 
strong test of pecuniary profit, under which better fruits have 
entirely failed. 



200 



VARIETIES. 



Doyenne Boussouck. 



Double Philippe. 
Beurre de Misode 



Nouvelle Boussouck 
New Boussouck 




This variety, imported from France by Wm. Kenrick in 184Ij 
has attained a high rank, and promises to fill, in some measure, 
the gap caused by the failure of the Vergalieu. 

It is a strong and healthy grower, but not one of the most vigor- 
ous. It is, however, a most constant bearer, and very productive. 
It succeeds well on the Quince ; but its flavor is not much improved 
by it, as far as my experience extends ; and as it is an early bearer 
on the Pear, it is not of great advantage to grow it on the former. 
The fruit resembles the Vergalieu in form and color, acquiring a 



FOR MARKET CULTIVATION ON PEAR. 201 

bright lemon yellow, often with a fine blush. It is considerably 
larger than the Vergalieu. 

The skin is somewhat rough, occasionally, and the form often 
slightly irregular, like the Duchesse. Flesh, buttery, very juicy, 
texture sometimes a little coarse. 



Flemish Beauty. 

Fondante des Bois. 1 Belle de Flanders. 

Beurrg des Bois. Bergamotte de Flanders. 

Beurr^ Spence. | Imp6ratrice de France. 

LATE BEFTEMBES TO MIDDLE OOTOBES. 

Fig. 73. 




VAEIETrES. 

The merits of this variety are : a strong, luxuriant growth, 
beautiful shape, forming a perfect, but rather open, pyramid, with 
but little shortening in ; fruit of large size and fine shape, beau- 
tiful color, melting texture, rich honeyed flavor, perfumed aroma, 
and great abundance of juice — thus being one of the most luscious 
and agreeable of fruits. 

It decays, however, soon after ripening, and cannot be left on 
the tree as long as most others. It requires to be gathered before 
the stem will readily cleave from the spur, and while quite taste- 
less and hard. 

The fruit is very regularly obovate ; skin, a dark green, chang- 
ing to pale yellow on one side, with often a crimson blush, and to 
rich russet on the other. Stem slender, about one inch long, set 
in very regular but shallow cavity. This variety requires a good 
and deep soil, without which it is apt to be inferior, and shy of 
bearing. Contrary to the experience of some, I have found this 
variety grows well on the Quince, and I have none that excels it 
m luxuriance and in beauty of shape without pruning. It has not, 
however, reached an age to sufficiently prove its productiveness. 

This Pear is a great favorite with pomologists. It occupies a 
preeminent place at most horticultural exhibitions. Specimens 
are often exhibited measuring thirteen to fifteen inches in circum- 
ference, weighing a pound and upwards, of great beauty of form 
and color. The shape of this Pear varies less than any other 
variety. Dr. Grant, an eminent horticulturist, gathered from a 
tree, eight years planted, 400 pears, which sold for $30. 

At the Exhibition for 1857, of the Massachusetts Horticultural 
Society, the specimens of Flemish Beauty shown would average 
larger than those exhibited of the Duchesse d'Angouleme. 



Lawrence. 

DEOBMBES. 



This is a native variety, and ranks high with almost all culti- 
vators. It originated on the Lawrence Farm, Flushing, L. I., 
and is considered a hybrid of the St. Germain and Vergalieu. The 
tree is hardy, tolerably vigorous, handsomely shaped; and with a 



FOK MARKET CULTIVATION ON PEAE. 203 

little pains in pruning, acquires a very regular conical form. A 
characteristic of its growth is, that the branches grow nearly at 

No. 74. 




right angles to the stem, and often nearly opposite to each other, 
giving an open head and regular shape. The wood is not stout, 
nor yet slender ; it is of a pale brown with a slight yellowish shade, 
occasionally armed with imperfect thorns. This variety is remark- 
ably free from diseases and defects. I have never known an in- 
stance of blight or of cracking of the bark, or of that obstinate 
refusal to bear sometimes met with in other kinds. 

The fruit much resembles the Vergalieu in size, and in appear- 
ance when ripe, though not quite so golden; but its rich, juicy, 



204 



VARIETIES. 



aromatic flavor, melting and buttery texture, rival that famous 
pear in its perfection. It is peculiarly adapted either to late 
keeping or early ripening, according as it is differently treated — 
being capable of being brought to perfection any time between 
Nov. 1st and March 1st. This much increases its value as a 
market pear. It brings the highest prices, and is much sought 
for by fruit dealers. Mr. John D. Wolfe and Mr. John H. 
Ferris, of Throg's Neck, cultivate it in large quantities, and great 
perfection, equaling the best Vergalieus in size, and some speci- 
mens much excelling them. 



Se c K E L 



PTEMBEE TO FIEBT NOVEMBB] 



Na 75. 



This variety has won and retained the highest popularity, in 
spite of the inferior size of its fruit, its slow growth, and its tardi- 
ness in coming into bearing. It is the smallest of the pears 
that hold any place in popular esteem, and the trees on pear- 
stocks, without extra treatment, are often fifteen years in pro- 
ducing their first fruit. 

This variety originated 
near Philadelphia, and was a 
chance seedling. Some Eu- 
ropean Pomologists have pro- 
nounced it the most highly 
flavored of all pears, in which 
opinion I by no means concur. 
Its flavor is so sweet as to 
be sickening to many, and it 
lacks the highest essentials 
of sparkling, sprightly juice. 
The tree is hardy, and 
every where free from blight, 
even where all others are 
affected. It is trained to a 
pyramidal form easily, with- 
out much pruning. The wood 
is short-jointed, rather stout, 




FOK MAEKET CULTIVATION ON PEAR. 



205 



of an olive brown. The fruit is obovate, brownish yreen at first, 
changing to a dull yellow, with a reddish russet cheek ; stem not 
very long; calyx set in a very shallow basin. It has the merit of 
long keeping, while ripe, and may be ripened any time during Sep- 
tember and October. In collections, I would advise to plant a 
few Seckels on Quince, for trial. It has a tendency to overbear, 
when of considerable age, and. in consequence, the fruit becomes 
very small. 



Winter Nelis. 



Bonne de Malines. 
Nellia d'Hiver. 



Colmar Nelis. 
Beurre de Malines. 




206 VARIETIES. 

T am decidedly of the opinion that there is no Pear which excels 
this in all the good qualities of a fruit. There are but two defects, 
and these are not serious. Its appearance is uninviting, much 
resembling a russet apple, and the tree is a straggling, irregular 
grower, its shoots being thin, twining, and sparsely set. Accord- 
ingly, nurserymen sometimes work it high up, on some free grow- 
ing variety, to form standards • but I have found no difficulty in 
forming tolerably-shaped pyramids by summer pruning. 

It is hardy, with tough, close-grained wood, enabling it to 
endure extremes ; is a moderately rapid grower, comes into bearing 
early, and is very productive ; has an open habit unless shortened 
in ; leaves small ; wood of a light yellowish brown. 

It has been much condemned on the Quince, and I think some- 
what unjustly. I have found that, on this stock, it makes a vigor- 
ous growth, a very firm union, and fruits well. 

The fruit is of medium size, and in the most favorable condi- 
tions quite large ; is of a light grayish russet ; roundish, apple- 
shaped ; melting, buttery, sweet, high flavored, and very juicy. 
To obtain it of large size, the fruit must be much thinned, as the 
tree is greatly inclined to overbearing. It grows in long clusters, 
resembling ropes of onions. It often ripens by the middle of 
November, but by care in preservation, may be kept until Christ- 
mas. This variety, Mr. Downing says, holds the same rank 
among winter fruits that the Seckel does among the autumn. 



FOR MARKET CULTIVATION ON QUINCE. 207 



VARIETIES THAT MAY BE GROWN ON 
THE QUINCE. 

In the first glow of satisfaction with which Pomologists received 
the announcement that the much-coveted pear, which demanded 
the care of two generations to witness its fruiting, could be grown 
successfully upon the Quince, every variety of pear was grown 
on every variety of quince, and the consequence was, a disappoint- 
ment — whose reflux, for a few years, seemed to threaten the very 
existence of quince-rooted pear trees, and cause their extermin- 
ation. 

It has now become fairly settled, that while all varieties of Pear 
will exist upon the quince-root, but few will bear the test of the 
following rules, for growing the Pear upon that stock. 

1 . The variety must have such an affinity for the Quince, as to 
grow equally well upon it and the pear-root — which can only be 
known by extensive experiments, by persons in different localities. 

2. The sort of pear must be very considerably earlier in coming 
into bearing than upon its own roots — in the case of the Bartlett. 
but little would be gained by its possessing an affinity with the 
Quince, as it is sufficiently precocious in its fruiting to dwarf the 
tree on its own stock. 

3. The Pear should be somewhat improved in size, flavor, and 
perhaps, in some varieties, in productiveness. 

When all of these conditions are fulfilled, it will be found that 
comparatively few varieties imperatively demand the quince-stock 
for their perfection. At the same time, almost all can be grown 
upon it, by complying with the conditions for their treatment, in 
planting, cultivation, and fruiting, viz. : 

To bury the Quince some inches below the surface. 

To cultivate the ground thoroughly, and supply sufficient nour- 
ishment; and 

To carefully prevent overbearing when very young. 



208 



VAillETIES. 



Beurre d'Anjou. 
Nee Plus Meuris. j Ne Plus Mcuris. 

Fig. 77. 




For this noble Pear, we are indebted to Col. Marshall P. Wilder, 
who imported it from France. Notwithstanding the high claims 
made for it by him, it has not only met, but promises to exceed our 
expectations of it. Nothing could be finer than the sight of the 
specimen trees, ten or twelve years old, in Col. Wilder's ground, 
loaded with large and fair fruit, as T saw them in the fall of 1857. 

It is a most prolific bearer, and, from its size, late keeping, and 
the hardy growth of the tree, promises to become one of the best 
market fruits. Its period of ripening is usually assigned to Octo- 



VAEIETIES. 209 

ber; but some specimens sent me by Mr. Wilder were sound, 
and not quite ripe, when cut on the 10th of December. I have, 
however, seen it ripen, for the most part, near the last of October 
to the middle of November. 

The tree makes a peculiarly stout, upright growth, the branches 
of a dark, purplish brown, sfeirting out from the trunk at a con- 
siderable angle, but immediately growing upright, and presenting 
the appearance of being nearly parallel with the main stem. The 
fruit is roundish obovate, often considerably larger, upon one side, 
and curving to the other, with a short, straightish stem. The flesh 
is quite yellowish, buttery, and with a very rich, sprightly, sub-acid 
flavor. The pear must be marked hest. 



Beurre Superfin. 

OOTOBBE — NOVEMBBB. 

The Beurre Superfin is a beautiful Pear, of large size, which, 
although comparatively new, has received the unqualified appro- 
bation of all pomologists, as possessing all the nice requisites to 
entitle it to rank as first-rate. The tree is vigorous, and hand- 
somely shaped, and quite early prolific on pear or quince-stock, 
and not liable to any of the serious qualifications which modify 
our praise of other varieties. The fruit, when fit for gathering, is 
of a deep pea-green, resembling the Glout Morceau ; and though 
ordinarily ripe late in October, with care will keep to the first 
of December. When ripening, it changes to a rich yellow, and 
has the rather uncommon virtue of remaining in a condition of 
excellence for several days after ripening. It is of the most but- 
tery, melting texture, and the abundance of rich, sugary juice, is 
a constant source of surprise. It is very regular and constant in 
its shape, of a slightly turbinate and obovate shape. This pear 
will undoubtedly attain a high popularity, to which the hardiness, 
productiveness, and beauty of the tree, and the excellence of the 
fruit, richly entitle it. 

It originated at Angers, in the grounds of M. Goubalt. 



210 



FOB MAEKET CULTIVATION — ON QUINCE. 



Beurre Diel. 



Beurre Eoyal, 
Beurrt5 Melon, 
Beurre Magnifique, 
Beurre Incomparable, 
Buerre de Trois Tours, 
Beurr6 Melonde de Kops, 



Celeste, 

Dillon, 

Florimond, 

Dorotliee Eoyal, 

Diel, 

Gros Dillon. 



Fig. 78. 




VAEIETIES. 211 

This noble Pear is one of the few hardy and profitable varieties 
produced by artificial cultivation or design. It is a seedling of Van 
MoNS, named in honor of his friend, Dr. Diel ] and will preserve 
the memory of the latter longer than any act of his own busy and hon- 
orable life. It is one of the most vigorous varieties in its growth, 
and is perfectly successful on the Quince ; and like the Duchesse, its 
flavor is greatly improved by that stock. On pear-roots, or when 
grown on cold soils, or while the trees are very young, the fruit is apt 
to be astringent and coarse ; and I have known excellent cultivators, 
unaware of its demands, to regraft the Diel trees with inferior 
varieties. While young, it is a shy bearer ; and when in full bearing, 
the fruit is so regularly distributed through the tree that thinning 
is seldom necessary. The fruit is abundant in juice, of rich sub- 
acid flavor, half-melting, somewhat coarse-grained near the core. 
The skin is thick, and somewhat astringent, and should be removed 
before the fruit is eaten. It is obtuse pyriform in shape, of a russet 
lemon yellow ; stem a little more than an inch long. Its period 
of ripening may be prolonged from 1st October to December by 
picking early, and packing in close boxes in dry, cool rooms. It 
needs more care in ripening than some others. The shoots are a 
dark brown, tinged with gray; inclined to twist with abrupt 
curves. Vigorous pruning is necessary to produce well-shaped 
pyramids. 

In the grounds of Mr. Winchester, of New Haven, trees of this 
variety, six or seven years old, which were models of beauty in 
shape, produced a crop of fruit in 1856, of which very few speci- 
mens weighed less than fourteen ounces, and a considerable num- 
ber more than a pound. 

At one of the Massachusetts Horticultural Exhibitions, twelve 
Beurre Diel Pears were shown which weighed fourteen pounds ; 
and Mr. Barry exhibited four of the same variety, raised in Iowa, 
which weighed nearly five pounds. 



212 FOR MAKKET CULTIVATION — ON QUINCE. 

DucHESSE d'Angouleme. 
Des Eparronais. | Eezenas. 

FIBBT OCTOBEB TO FIFTEENTH NOVEMBEB. 

This peerless fruit must be crowned as The Queen of Pears. 
Like its patroness, the daughter of the unfortunate Louis XVL, it 
was by narrow chances it escaped the axe. Near Angers. Mons. 

Le Baron one morning discovered his tenant engaged in 

digging around a fine thrifty pear tree — a chance seedling in a 
hedge — and on questioning, the Baron found it was for the purpose 
of exterminating it, root and branch. " This tree, Mons. Le Baron. 
for twenty years bears no fruit." "No matter," replied Mons., 
'' it is a good thing, to have cut those roots there ; it will now bear 
fruit ] fill up the trench, and we shall see." This rough root- 
pruning fulfilled the wise Baron's prophecy, and the succeeding 
summer saw it loaded with that queen of fruits. But though 
royal, the beautiful Pear was still uncrowned. 

One day, the daughter of Louis XVI., was to pass through 
Lyons, and its inhabitants deputed a Committee, of which our 
friend Mons. Le Roy was one, to receive her appropriately. 
Nine fair maidens presented the Duchesse with golden salvers, 
on which lay heaped the more precious fruit, and begged her to 
bestow upon it her name — and the pear now recognized as the 
crowning glory of all fruits, was thenceforward known as the 
Duchesse d'Angouleme. There are some who think the pear the 
more royal of the two. 

It is by far the largest of table-fruits ; of rich, aromatic flavor ; 
melting, though tending to a coarse fibre, near the core, when 
badly grown and ripened. Very juicy, and keeping long after 
being sufficiently ripe to eat. 

The tree is somewhat tender in very cold winters where the 
thermometer sinks to 20° or more below zero; but hardy and 
strong wooded, and very thrifty, stocky growth on soils of moderate 
fertility, and prefers a rich, sandy loam to produce its highest 
excellence. The fruit is often coarse and tasteless on the pear- 
stock ; but both tree and fruit seem the most completely fitted for 




DUCIIESSE D'ANGOULEME. 



VARIETIES. 213 

the quince-stock of all pears. Grown on this, the size is vastly 
increased, the flavor and texture improved, and the low structure 
prevents these great fruits from being blown otr. while the bud 
unites with the quince-stock with so great firmness, that few trees 
of this variety ever fracture at the graft, and all seem to grow 
with as much vigor as on the pear stock. It must be said, how- 
ever, that, like other royal personages, it does not produce great 
numbers of fruit, at least when young, though I have often seen 
on rich soils, trees loaded as heavily as any other variety. The 
fruit must be well thinned, the tree severely pruned, and the soil 
rich. The wood is of a light yellow, tending to a reddish bloom 
on the sunny side of the young growth. The tree is not very 
regular in its shape, but endures severe pruning well. 

Specimens of this Pear, weighing two pounds and a half, h&ve 
been produced in California; and one which weighed two and a 
quarter pounds was raised by Dr. Ward, of Newark, N. J. It is 
one of the most profitable market varieties, the largest fruits selling 
from two shillings to a dollar each, in the shops of Broadway. I 
have picked Duchesse weighing twenty-one ounces, frojn trees 
received from France in the preceding spring, or seven months 
Dreviously. 



214: 



FOE MARKET CULTIVATION — ON QUINCE. 



Easter Beurre. 

Doyenn6 d'Hiver, I Doyenne de Printemps, 

Belle d'lxelles, Seigneur d'Hiver, 

Berg, de la Penticote, | Winter Beurr6, 

Beurr(5 d'Austerlitz. 

MAEOH AND APKIL. 



Fig. 79. 




This late keeping, but rather inconstant fruit, has of late years 
received extraordinary attention. It is imported in considerable 
quantities every spring by the fruit-sellers, who obtain in March 
and April enormous prices for it. It has thus far proved quite 



VAEIETIES. 215 

uncertain in this country, but as far as i can learn, its failure is 
the result of neglect of thinning and improper treatment in ripen- 
ing. The French greatly excel us in both these processes, and 
the imported pears of this variety are almost invariably fine. 

It should be understood and remembered that winter pears must 
acquire a stock of more concentrated juice than the autumn or 
summer varieties ; the sap must be richer in the sugar-producing 
principle, and if more fruit is left on the tree than the roots and 
leaves can supply with the necessary elements, the consequence is 
apparent. Second, that all the juice contained in the fruit at the 
time of picking, is necessary to complete the chemical change of 
ripening, so that, in proportion as the fruit loses its water, its dry 
elements lose their power of uniting and producing a high flavor. 
From these facts, it will be perceived, that unless all the juice of 
a winter pear is preserved by artificial means, it will be impossible 
to ripen it with any degree of excellence, although the fruit is 
medium sized, seldom reaching ten ounces. It has been sold in 
New York as high as twelve dollars a dozen ; but the more ordi- 
nary price for good specimens is three dollars per dozen. Its flesh 
is white, and very juicy, buttery, and melting, when well ripened. 
It is obtuse pyriform, often a little flattened, dark green, sometimes 
reddened on the cheek, and acquiring but a faint yellow in ripen- 
ing. It requires a longer season than that of the Eastern States 
to come to highest perfection. Its season is March and April; 
occasionally May and June. The tree is a hardy, vigorous grower ; 
bark, a peculiar reddish brown ; shoots, stocky, tending to upright 
growth. It is well adapted to the Quince, on which it makes a 
strong growth, with much improved fruit. 

My recent experience is, that the Doyenne d'Alenpon and Beurre 
d'Hiver Nouveau will prove greatly superior to this for general 
cultivation. But it is too early to speak decisively. 



216 



FOR MAKKET CULTIVATION ON QUINCE. 



Glout Morceau. 



Glout Morceau, 
Colmar d'Hiver, 



Benrre d'Hardenpont, 

Beurre d'Aremberg (erroneously). 



DEOBMBE] 



TO JANUABT. 



Fig. 80. 




This excellent pear is of Flemish origiiij its name signifying 
" greedy morsel," and though plain and unattractive in appear- 



VARIETIES. 217 

ance, its nobler qualities make it a favorite whenever grown. Its 
reputation has sometimes suffered by being confounded "wrh the 
Beurre d'Aremberg, a very inferior and dissimilar variety. I 
have often received it from France under the latter name. The 
d'Aremberg is feeble and tender in growth; shoots starting at 
acute angles from the stem, growing upright, of a light reddish 
tinge, and on the Quince, the growth is still poorer, and the union 
imperfect and feeble. Its fruit is of pyramidal shape, stem short, 
stout, fleshy, a little curved, size seldom half that of the Glout 
Morceau. Color quite yellow, even while hard and on the tree. 
But the Glout Morceau is in every particular dissimilar, but in 
no respect more so than in the growth and vigor of the tree, which 
is a very vigorous grower, making a handsome pyramid ; and though 
said to be somewhat subject to the blight, has not proved so on the 
quince stock. The wood is of a light brown, clouded with a gray- 
ish tinge. It is not very prolific, while young, but quite so, when 
more advanced, the fruit being uniformly of good size. It is pecu- 
liarly adapted to the Quince, the growth being equal to that on 
the Pear, and the fruit much improved. The fruit is of a deep 
pea-green, until it matures, when it becomes of a greenish yellow, 
with patches of brown russet. The fruit has a rich, sugary per- 
fumed flavor, is melting and buttery, and keeps late, flesh colorless 
and fine-grained. 

In the fall of 1857, I saw in the garden of Mr. Van Dine, at 
Cambridge, Mass., a tree of this variety, on which, it was estimated, 
were growing from eighty to one hundred dozen of fine pears, such 
as Mr. Van Dine had for several years sold in Boston for two and 
three dollars per dozen. The tree is very tardy in bearing; and 
is, therefore, one of those varieties for which the quince-stock is 
peculiarly valuable. 



10 



218 



FOK MAKKET CULTIVATION — ON QUINCE. 



Louise Bonne de Jersey. 

Louise Bonne d'Avranches, I Bonne Louis© d'Avrancliea 

William the Fourtli. 



Fig. 81. 




VARIETIES. 219 

Some discrepancy of the authorities in regard to the names of 
this variety, have produced a little embarrassment. M. Cappe 
pronounces the Louise Bonne d'Avranches quite distinct, in which 
decision Mr. Downing, in an account of his visit to Paris, coin- 
cided ; but in his fruit-book he gives the names as synonyms. 

It is a native of the Isle of Jersey, where it is produced in higher 
excellence than elsewhere. 

It has an upright habit of growth, is easily distinguished by its 
dark purplish shoots, a little flecked with light grayish spots. 
On the Quince, it is an abundant and early bearer, and its flavor 
is much improved on that stock. When, however, the trees of this 
variety on the pear-stock have attained considerable age, there 
does not seem to be much difference in quality between the fruits 
grown on both stocks. When it is allowed to fruit too heavily, 
or when grown on very young trees on pear-stocks, there is a ten- 
dency to astringency, especially in the skin. On the Quince, it 
does not readily take the pyramid form, its prolific nature crowd- 
ing the wood-buds into fruit-buds, causing a deficiency of branches. 
To fill out the cone, it must be more heavily cut back than other 
kinds, to force the dormant buds to push, and form radiai branches. 
The fruit should be very much thinned, as much more will set 
than can be perfected. 

The fruit should be picked as soon as the stem will cleave with- 
out breaking, as its astringency is increased by ripening on the 
tree. This pear is the most abundant in sprightly, subacid, cham- 
pagne-flavored juice, of all pears. Its thick skin materially serves 
to retain this juice, retarding evaporation : and although considered 
by some an objection, it is essential in preserving the excellence 
of the fruit. The fruit is often of a beautiful crimson color on the 
sunny side. 



220 FOR MARKET CULTIVATION ON QUINCE. 



Vicar of Winkfield, 



Cure, 

Monsieur le Curfe. 

Belle de Berrl, 



Cornice de Toulon, 
Belle Adrienne, 
Belle Heloise Clion. 



DECEMBEB. 



While this fruit has few of the high qualities that amateurs 
now require from a pear, to place it in the first rank, it has still 
such valuable properties that it must receive attention. As a 
market fruit, there is none which, I think, when all its qualifica- 
tions are taken into consideration, will have a higher value. The 
tree is very hardy, and probably the most vigorous grower of all 
pears, making very stout, curving, and stocky shoots. It comes 
quite early inro bearing, and has the uncommon fauli of maturing 
twice the number of fruits which the tree should bear, without 
much lessening the quantity borne in succeeding years, or checking 
entirely its groAvth. When the fruit is thinned to one-fourth, or 
one-half, the pears reach a very large size, and are much improved 
in flavor ; but when small, the fruit is astringent, hard, and seldom 
ripening so as to be eatable. The first requisites in the treatment 
of this fruit are, thinning to the number which will become full 
grown, and continuing it upon the tree as late as safety from frosts 
will allow. Mr. Samuel Walker and Col. Wilder esteem this 
fruit so highly, that they were heard to say, many years ago, that 
should they be confined in their choice to a singlevariety, they would 
strongly incline to select the Vicar ; and at the last Pomological Con- 
vention, stated that their more recent experience confirmed their 
earlier belief. Its hardiness, great vigor, early prolific, and con- 
stant bearing — its large size, fine shape, rich color, and late keeping, 
overcome the serious objections to it which would condemn any 
other fruit. It is never melting, nor high flavored, though richly 
perfumed, is often astringent when not well grown, and when 
eaten too ripe, is mealy and dry. But when just ripe, it is crisp 
and tender, with an over- abundance of juice, of a pleasant acid 
flavor, which is particularly grateful, as being enjoyed during the 
season when autumn fruits are long gone, and winter fruits not 
yet ripened. But it is absolutely necessary that the following 




221 



222 FOR MAKKET CULTIVATION ON QUINCE. 

conditions must be fulfilled. Large size must be obtained by 
thinning, to concentrate the saccharine matter of the tree into few 
fruits; the pears should be allowed to hang late on the tree* 
should be at once removed to a cool room ; should be brought out 
but few at once to ripen, and should always be eaten before becom- 
ing sufficiently soft to be easily indented by the thumb and finger. 

Mr. William Howe, of Westchester County, has excelled most 
others in the production of this pear. I received from him, in the 
Fall of 1856, Vicars weighing seventeen ounces, and of beautiful 
shape and color. But these were far excelled by a specimen 
received from Oregon, which weighed twenty-eight ounces. A 
tree of this variety, five years planted, from the nursery row, 
grown by Prof. Mapes, was exhibited at the American Institute 
Fair, bearing one hundred and seventy fair-sized pears, far too 
many to arrive at the highest perfection. The fruit is large, 
curved pyriform, with neck much elongated, and continued up upon 
the stem, which is curved, and has flesh around its base. 

When placed in the sun, a day or two before ripening, it acquires 
a rich golden or lemon-yellow color. It is greatly improved by 
growing on the Quince, on which it makes a strong, vigorous 
growth, and a firm union, and proving most perfectly adapted to it 
in every respect. On deep alluvial, or rich and damp clay soils, 
it is somewhat subject to blight. 



Urbaniste. 

Beurrfe Piquery, I Beurrfe Drapier, 

Louise d'Orleans, I Count Colonna, 

St. Mark. 

O OT O B E E — N O V E M B E K. 

This excellent and beautiful pear is a favorite wherever it has 
fruited ; but the tree is so tardy in bearing, that comparatively few 
have proved its excellence. The natural beauty of the tree is 
unequalled, as it takes a stout pyramidal shape with scarcely any 
pruning, the cone being rapidly filled out with numerous branches 
that describe a graceful curve. The hardiness and tardy bearing 
of the tree give promise to it of great longevity. The fruit is but 
little above the medium size ; but its great excellence and freedom 



VAEIETIE8. 



223 



from disease or blemish entitle it to the highest rank. It is so 
tardy in bearing upon the pear-stock, that it would be a misfortune 
if it had proved unfitted for the Quince. It makes a firm union 
and vigorous growth upon that stock, and bears eight or ten years 
earlier than on pear-roots. 

Fig. 83. 




Col. Wilder says, that he has trees of this variety on both 
stocks, twenty feet in height, planted twenty years; and that 
while those on quince-roots have borne twelve years, those on 



224 



FOR MARKET CULTIVATION ON QUINCE. 



pear-stock have scarcely produced a specimen fruit. From each 
ot those on quince, two or three bushels of pears have been gathered 
in a single season. 

'I'he fruit is delicious in flavor, highly perfumed, melting, and 
without any of those serious faults possessed by some varieties, 
Buch as rotting at the core, cracking, or cankering. The pear is 
very smooth, often glossy, ripening to a pale, greenish yellow, 
with light russet spots; form obovate, with slightly hollowing sides 
near tlie neck. It is very broad at the calyx end in proportion, 
with a wide, deep basing, stem long, and set in a deep hollow. 
The wood is of a peculiar light grayish color, without the shading 
or tinting of other varieties on the sunny side. 



St. Michael. 
Butter Pear. 
Bergalo. 
White Beurre. 
YoIloAv Buttei". 
Doyenne 
Virgiilit'ii. 



White Doyenne. 

Poire de Simon. 

Deans. 

Snow Pear. 

Pine Pear. 

Poire Monsieur. 

Valencia. 

Doyenne Blanc. , 



Beurre Blanc. 

Common Doyennfe. 

Kasserbrine. 

Butterbrine. 

White Autumn Beurre. 

Warwick Bergamot. 

Poire <le Seigneur. 



It is Willi some hfsiiaiioii 1 admit tlii.s in ilic li.sr : but its great 
c\celleucc. iibundaui crops, and ilie hardiness ot" I he tree, compel 
inc i(> allow ii a place, but with ihc sad quaiification thai it can- 
not be tVaiifd !ii pe •i'cciiou. with any tolerable ceriainty. any 
where oJi ilie Athmtic Coast. It was Mr. Do\VMN{;'s opinion, 
that its failure was the result of the exhaustion of tlie alkaline 
salts of the soil. But this does not prove to be true, for the soil 
best supplied with these elements will no more produce perfect 
Vergaiieus than the jioorest soil. The tree grows vi;irorously, 
often loaded with fruit, which soon cankers, covered with a crust 
like burnt leather, cracking into irregular fissures, becoming 
totally unfit to eat. 

On the Quince, however, it is often obtained of great excellence. 
But it has not been sufficiently tested to pronounce with certainty 
on its uniform success ; and the tide of opinion latterly seems 
entirely opposed to it. 

The disease manifests itself principally in the region of large 
bodi-.*- of water — the ocean and great lakes. 



VARIETIES. 



225 



White Doyenne. 
Fig. 84. 




This fruit scarcely needs a description — it is of medium size 
oblong obovate, becoming golden yellow in ripening, with a ricn 
blush on one cheek. It is the very type by which all other Pears 
are compared in its melting, buttery texture, and abundant spiced 
and high-flavored juice. 

The tree is vigorous, of rather upright growth ; the yearling 
shoots of a yellowish cast, with a pale blush on sunny side ; 
the older wood, of a slight reddish glow. 

There are many seedlings of this variety that approach it in 
excellence. 

10* 



226 VARIETIES. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 

This second selection of pears is intended to include those hav- 
ing most of the properties requisite for the first list, but which are 
deficient in some important particular. Some are too new to be 
pronounced upon ; some are equal to those of the first list in certain 
localities, but not in all ; and generally, they possess too great 
excellence of flavor, size, and beauty, to be passed over. 

They are all necessary to a complete amateur collection, and 
the market-fruit raiser should have at least specimens of every 
kind, to test their fitness for his locality. Any of these varieties 
may be pronounced best, when the cultivator has the soil and 
climate which bring them to their highest perfection, and they 
suffer no disparagement by being placed in this list ; for they may, 
in localities adapted to them, prove superior to any in the first list. 
It must be remembered that this selection is made more according 
to a marketman's calculations of profit and loss, than an amateur's 
enthusiastic admiration. 

Varieties proved to be adapted to the Quince, will be noted in 
the descriptions. Where nothing is stated in regard to the stock, 
it may be understood that the pear-stock is best for that variety, 
or that it is not sufficiently tested on the Quince. 



Andrews. 



B P T E M 



An excellent variety, as far as I have seen, proving a most 
hardy tree, a regular and early bearer. The fruit is said to rot 
occasionally at the core ; I have never found it to do so. According 
to Mr. Downing, it never suffers from blight, and I believe does 
not on most soils. A large number received by me from a nursery 
located on a low, alluvial soil — in fact, a drained mill-pond bed — 
blighted badly. Some of my friends who jiav# planted it, are 
lisappointed in its flavor and general character. The fruit is long 



ADDITIONAl. LIST. 



221 



pyriform, shaped somewhat like the Bartlett, but smaller ; with a 
yellowish green and reddish tinge on the cheek. Very juicy, melt- 
ing, with a delicious sparkling flavor. 



Ananas d'Ete. 

SEPTEMBEK AND OOTOBEB. 



Fruit excellent, fine 
grained, buttery, mel- 
ting, from medium 
size to large; abun- 
dant sugary juice, 
of rich flavor, and 
perfumed when per- 
fect. Skin rough, 
coarse, — yellowish 
green, with large rus- 
set roughness flecked 
over it. Shape py- 
riform, tapering quite 
regularly to the stem, 
which is set without 
depression, is straight, 
and is of medium 
length. The fruit 
is very variable, and 
sometimes quite poor. 
Ripens in September 
and October, though 
termed by the French 
Summer Pineapple. 



Fig. 85. 




VARIETIES. 



Beurre Gris d'Hiver Nouveau. 



Benrr^ gris de Lucon, 
" " d'Hiver, 



Beurre gris Superieur, 
Beurre de Fontenay. 



DEOKMBER TO FBBBXTAET. 



This pear will be highly appreciated when better known, being 
one of the most su- 
gary, juicy, melt- ^^S* 86. 
ing, and buttery of 
winter pears ; — 
much resembles the 
Winter Nelis in tex- 
ture and tlavor. but 
is more sparkling 
and juicy. Fruit 
from medium .size 
to large, obovate. 
slightly depretsscd 
on one side, an ! 
hollow on the other. 
Stem stout and 
thick, skin, rough 
golden russet, often 
with a handsome 
blush, dotted with 
russet spots. This 
pear is the largest 
and handsomest of 

the russets. Tree moderately vigorous, very productive, with dark 
brown, almost reddish wood ; promises well on the Quince. Its 
late keeping — December to February — its ripening without the 
constant variability of the Easter Beurre, and other winter varie- 
ties, will give it a high reputation. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



Beurre St. Nicholas. 
Ducheese d^Orleans. | St. Nicholas. 

DEOtiMBES TO JANTTABT. 

Is placed in the highest rank by all who 
have fruited it. Very juicy, melting, with 
a high, and rather aromatic flavor. Obo- 
vate pyriform, swollen at the centre, 
medium size to large, light yellowish 
green, and occasionally a blush dotted 
with brown. Stem long, stoutish, curved, 
with fleshy insertion. 
It has grown well with 
me on ihe Quince, and 
makes a handsome py- 
ramid. Ripens in Sep- 
tember and early No- 
vember. 




VABIETIES. 



Beurre d'Aremberg. 



Due d'Aremberg. 

L'Orpheline. 

Deschamps. 



Orpheline d'Engheen. 
Beurre d'Orphelines. 
Colmar Deschamps. 



PBBBTTAET. 

I intended to place the Beurre d'Aremberg upon tne list of 
rejected varieties, but in deference to the American Pomological 
Society, I give it here a description. This name has been often 
erroneously applied to the Glout Morceau. The high claims made 
by the friends of this variety have not proved well founded : it 

Fig. 88. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



231 



being short-lived, cankerous, and unwholesome on the Quince, very 
difficult to ripen, often woody and astringent ; fruits early, of fair 
size and color, keeps like a black walnut, and tastes like one eaten 
— husk and all. Stem thick, irregular, fleshy; declined. Fruit 
obovate. short pyriform ; said by some to be " good," even "best." 
But it cannot be recomended for general culture. 



Beurre d'Amalis. 



OOTOBEB. 

Large, productive, fine flavored, often as good as the Bartlett. 
Tree a prodigious j^ g^^ 

rampant grower, 
difficult of re- 
straint. The fruit 
has the defect of 
never attaining 
more than a dun, 
dusky yellowish 
green, sometimes 
with a faint blush, 
and is far from 
attractive in ap- 
pearance. Flesh 
yellowish, often 
somewhat coarse, 
must be eaten im- 
mediately on rip- 
ening, soon beco- 
ming mealy and 
insipid. Shape, 
short obovate, in- 
clined to irregular 
turbinate. Stem 
long, oblique, ca- 
lyx open, basin 
shallow 




282 



VARIETIES. 



Beurre Bosc. 
Bosc^s HaschenWrne. 

NO VEHBEB. 



Fig. 90. 




A most beautiful, tapering 
pyriform fruit, with a thin, long 
neck, and long curved stem. It 
is of the highest excellence, the 
best of the Van Mens Seedlings ; 
but it is feeble in growth and 
constitution, especially when 
young. Shoots dark brown, thin 
and long. The fruit is borne 
somewhat thinly over the tree, 
never in clusters, is a rich russet 
brown, but- 
tery, melt- 



delicious fla- 
vor, white 
flesh, pecu- 
liar shape, 
which once 
seen, cannot 
be mistaken, 



ADDITIONAI. LIST. 



233 



Beurre Langelier. 



DIOBHBBB AND JAXTTABT. 



Fig. 91. 




A new variety, which I have not thoroughly tested ; but so 
esteemed by the older pomologists, that it must receive a place in 
this list. Fruit medium size, somewhat irregular obovate pyri- 
forni, tending to turbinate, contracting near tlie neck like Nouveau 



234 VARIETIES* 

Poiteau. Stem stout, rather long, set without depression on the 
obtuse end of the pear. Basin often furrowed ; calyx set deep in 
it. Color lively green, changing to pale yellow in ripening, with 
reddish blush, and russet dots. Flesh yellowish white, and when 
well ripened, melting with abundant, rich, sprightly, subacid juice. 
Good on Pear, somewhat better on Quince. Tree vigorous and 
productive. Season during December and January. 



Beurre Capiaumont. 

Capiamnont. | Aurora Beurr^. 

This pear deserves a place in this list, not so much from the 
quality of its fruit as from the great hardiness, productiveness, 
and beauty of the tree. It is a vigorous grower. Fruit medium 
size, very regular, long turbinate, tapering insensibly into the 
stem, which is long, thin, and curved. Quite sweet, melting, 
buttery, fine-grained and high flavored, but often astringent, its 
quality being quite variable. Skin smooth^ clear yellow, with 
russet red cheek. 

Beurre Clairgeau. 
novembbe to j a n it a e y . 

This most noble and beautiful pear disappointed the too sanguine 
expectations that attended its first introduction ; but the reaction 
will turn in its favor, and it will be fairly appreciated. The fruit 
is rather coarse in texture, and not always of high flavor ; flesh 
yellowish, and, when quite in perfection, buttery, juicy, with a 
pleasant, perfumed flavor, and rather granular texture. It is 
large, pyriform, obtuse, one-sided, keeps well ; is good on Quince, 
and will certainly prove a valuable market fruit. Tree bears as 
early as the Bartlett ; wood much resembling it. 

It is certainly one of the most gorgeous of fruits, coloring with 
a peculiar gold bronze tint, shading into a brilliant red blush, and 
when borne, as often occurs, upon trees only two or three years 
from the bud, and acquiring a size even larger than in the cut, 
presents a strikingly beautiful appearance. The Clairgeau ripens 



^\ 




BKIKIIE CLAIRC.rAU. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



235 



with a peculiarity which is worthy of notice. While most fine 
pears lose greatly in quality by over-ripening, becoming rotten at 
the core, insipid, or mealy, the flavor of this pear is much improved 
when apparently verging on decay. Indeed, when a considerable 
portion of the exterior has decayed, the interior will be sound, and 
retain its flavor, a quality that will not be despised by those who 
have ripened the core-rotting pears. 



Beurre Giffard. 



MIDDLE OF ATJGTTST. 



In quality and size, 
this beautiful pear 
ranks highest among 
the August varieties. 
It approaches nearest 
the standard of buttery, 
melting, juicy, and high 
flavored pears. But on 
the other hand, the tree 
is of feeble and strag- 
gling growth ; growing 
not more than half as 
rapidly as most others. 
It is of a peculiar red- 
dish tinge, brandling 
at obtuse angles. Fruit 
a little larger than me- 
dium, pyriform or long 
turbinate ; stem and 
fruit merging insensi- 
bly. Skin yellow, when 
ripe, with a red flush, 
often appearing mot- 
tled. 



Fig. 92, 




VARIETIES. 



Church. 

BEPTEMBEB 

Fig. 93. 




The original tree still stands in New Rochelle, Westchester 
County, N. Y., and is traced by Mr. Beukmans to the Huguenot 
settlers. It is remarkable, that wherever the Huguenots settled, 
the Pear abounds, and native varieties of great excellence are 
common. Around New Rochelle also originated the Parsonage, 
the Huntington, and others of less note. 

The Church Pear is irregular angular, oblate turbinate stem, 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



237 



long, stout ; skin, yeliow when ripe ; flesh, very buttery, melting 
and juicy, with perfumed rijch flavor when in perfection, '^t has 
been claimed as the Piatt, which it much resembles, but the iden- 
tity has not yet been established. 

Tree vigorous, healthy, a great bearer. 



Dearborn s Seedling. 



A very nice, juicy little Pear, grown 
around Boston, where it originated. 

Tree, a most pro- 
lific bearer particu- 
larly repugnant to 
tlie Quince. 

Fruit, when per- 
fect, very juicy, al- 
most melting, and 
of a refreshing, 
sprightly flavor,but 
it is quite often in- 
sipid and flavor- 
less, and always 
60 small as to be 
unfit for market 
cultivation. Skin 
very smooth and 
clear, slightly dot- 
ted ; ripening with 
a uniform light 
yellowish glow. 
Shape ne arly round, 
stem long. Ripens 
in middle August, 
but is not in eating 
condition quite as 
soon as the Bloodgood 



fo,- more than forty years 



Fig. 94. 




VABIETIE8. 



Gray Beurr6, 
Golden Beurrfe, 
Beurre du Koi, 
Isambert, 



Beurre Brown. 

Brown Butter, 
Beurre d'Amboise, 
Beurr6 d'or, 
Eed Beurre, 

8EPTEMBEB. 



Beurr^ Eouge, 
Beurre Dor6e, 
B. de Treveuren, 
Beurre Butter. 



These are but few of the synonyms of this once popular Pear, 
When in perfection it takes the first rank for melting, buttery 
texture, abundance of juice and delicious sub-acid flavor, but it is 
the very chameleon of Pears, and is so uncertain that but few can 
reasonably hope to ever bring it to its highest excellence. 

Fruit, rather large, oblong obovate, stem and flesh meeting 
without shoulder or basin ; skin, a little rough and rusty, and 
color " such as the gods please." Unfit for general cultivation. 



Delices d' Hardenpont, of Belgium. 



NOVBMBEK AND DBOEMBBE. 

The Tree is described by Berkmans as feeble and unhealthy in 
Belgium ', but growing much better in this country, where it is 
still not very vigorous. Shoots long and upright. 

Fruit regularly pyramidal, tending to turbinate, sometimes 
angular ; stem short, thick ; skin rather rough ; yellowish green 
when ripe. Flesh buttery, melting, very juicy, sweet and highly 
perfumed. 



Beurre Hardy. 
Beurre Sterkman. 

8EPTBMBBE AND OOTOBEK. 

Fruit large, obovate pyriform, one-sided like the Beurre d'Anjou, 
light reddish green, with brownish spots : stem stoutish, of medium 
length, inclined, set in a moderate cavity with a high shoulder on the 
larger side ; calyx much spread ; basin broad and shallow ; buttery, 
melting with great quantity of rich, sparkling, vinous, perfumed 
juice. The tree grows vigorously on both pear and quince. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



239 



Dix. 

OOTOBEB TO DBOEMBEB, 



Fig. 95. 




The Dix is a native of Boston. 
It has tasked to the utmost the pa- 
tience of cultivators by its tardiness 
in bearing. Col. Wilder and Mr. 
B. B. French have grown the trees 
nineteen years without obtaining 
the first peck of fruit. 

Fruit very large, long pyriform, 
rich deep yellow when 
ripe strongly marked with 
irregular russet spots. 
Stem stoutj not quite short, 
set with a lip turned 
against its base, in a 
slight depression. Flesh 
melting, suga- 
ry and very 
juicy, and al- 
though not en- 
tirely free from 
a little coarse- 
ness, is most 
rich and delici- 
ous. Does not 
succeed on the 
Quince. 



240 



VARIETIES. 



SieuUe, 



Doyenne Sieulle. 
Beurr^ Sieulle, | Bergamotte SietiUa 



Fig. 96. 




This is a most excellent fruit, rather large, very juicy and but- 
tery, somewhat coarse-grained, about half melting. Shape pecu- 
liar roundish obovate. and rather angular. Skin, bright, dark green, 
changing to a greenish yellow, much dotted with green spots. 

The hardiness and vigor of the tree and remarkable i loduc- 
tiveness entitle it to high estimation as a market pear, although 
the fruit is hardly high-colored enough for the whimsical taste of 
a capricious public. 

Its growth indicates fitness for the Quince. Season, Octobe* 
and November. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



241 



DOYENNK d'AlENQON. 



Doyennfe Gris d'Hiver Nouveau, 
Doyennfe Gris d'Hiver d'Alencon, 



St. Michael d'Hiver, 

New Gray Winter Vergaliea. 



APRIL. 




Although not yet sufficiently tested, this pear has received the 
highest praise, wherever well cultivated. 1 have proved speci- 
mens from several localities, and all were excellent. The tree is 
vigorous, of handsome shape, easily trained to a pyramid, does 
e xceedingly well, and is best on the Quince. Fruit, obovate, obtuse 
pyriform, with rough, thick, astringent skin of russet green, with 
coarse russet spots. Flesh, rather coarse-grained, yet melting 
juicy, and almost buttery, with a sprightly vinous and rich flavor. 

With proper treatment it keeps till April, which makes it valu- 
able for a market Pear. If kept warm it ripens in December. 

11 



242 



VARIETIES. 



Frederic of Wirtemberg. 

Eoi de Wirtemberg. | King of Wirtemberg. 

Vemuleu d'Ete. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



243 



I cannot bring myself to slight this gorgeous fruit, or rate it 
as low as some pomologists. It is certainly the most beautitul 
object that has been colored by the pencil of nature. It hangs 
upon the tree like a drop of gold and crimson, its tints deepening 
day after day. The flesh is white, melting, and delicious ; and 
when in perfection, sweet and buttery — leaving little to be desired 
by the taste of the eater. Its growth is singular; the leading shoot 
is tall, stout, stocky, with few or no radial branches. Does not 
easily take the pyramidal form. 



Fulton. 

OCTOBEB AND KOYEMBEH. 



Fig. 99, 



The Fulton is a beauti- 
ful Bergamot-shaped Pear, 
of a dark, russet brown ; 
— rich, sprightly flavor, 
often; and although not 
juicy, is not by any means 
dry. 



The tree is said to be 
hardy, but a poor grower. 
It has admirers who claim 
for it the best qualities : 
but in my experience it is 
too small for a market 
Pear. 




244 



VARIETIES. 



Golden Beurre of Bilboa 



8 BPT EM 



One of the most 
clear, golden-skin- 
ned, and beautiful 
of fruits. It is usu- 
ally capped with a 
rich russet around 
the stem, which is 
quite long and 
slender, set in a 
very slight basin. 
It is quite small, 
and not unfre- 
quently much re- 
sembles the Dear- 
born's Seedling. It 
is often far from 
buttery, occasion- 
ally a little acid, 
with an abundance 
of sprightly juice. 
When perfect, it is 
buttery, melting, 
of a rich, pleasant 
sub-acid flavor. 

Good on Pear oi 
Quince. 



Fig. 100. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



24& 



Doyenn^ Gris, 
•* Eoux, 
'* Galouge, 



Grat Doyenne. 

Gray Doyenne, 

Red 

Gay 



Gray St. Michael, 
Doyenne d'Automne^ 
St. Michael Dore. 



OOTOBKE TO DEOEMBBB. 
Fig. 101. 




When in perfection, this fruit cannot be too highly praised, but 
unfortunately, like the White Doyenne. subject to cracking and 
spotting, until it loses the very semblance of a Pear. It much re- 
sembles the White Doyenne. It is a little rounder than the Verga- 
lieu, with flesh of the same delicious, melting, buttery, fine-grained 
texture, and like the latter, is in every respect the very type of 
excellence. 

It will not come to perfection on the Atlantic Coast. 



246 



VARIETIES. 




I know of MO reason why this sliould not be ranked first-rate, 
except that it has not been extensively proved. It was raised from 
the seed by a gentleman in New Haven, whose name it bears. It 
is classed by the American Pomological Society for general cul- 
tivation. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



247 



The fruit is large, obtuse pyriform, obovate ; stem rather more 
than an inch long, curved, and set within a cavity : skin a clear, 
rather pale yellow when ripe, with small russet dots, and occasion- 
ally a faint blush. Flesh very melting, with a rich, sparkling, 
slightly acid juice, faintly perfumed. The tree is vigorous, but 
not very productive when young, has not been much proved on 
the Quince. 



Madeleine. 



CJltron des Cannes, 



Magdale 



A favorite from its early ripening, 
in perfection, melting and 
juicy, of small size, some- 
what obovate, tending to py- 
riform; stem long and curved, 
skin smooth, light, yellow 
green. 

The fruit is very often far 
from first-rate; the tree is 
very liable to blight. 

It is surprisingly vigorous 
in its growth, in favorable 
locations, and is so regular in 
the formation of its branches 
as to readily form a hand- 
some pyramid. 

We shall look in vain, 
however, for high flavor, or 
great excellence, in pears 
ripening so early, but as tl;e 
taste has not become criti- 
cal by comparison with au- 
tumn pears, we are more 
easily satisfied. 



It is very delicious when 

Fig. 103. 




248 



VABIETIES. 



Marie Louise. 
Farim Maria Louise, | 

Fig. 104. 



Marie CbretieniWi 




This is a most excellent and beautiful pear, but the tree is a 
feeble straggling grower, lorniing numerous shoots : easily shaped 



ADDraONAL LIST. 249 

to a pyramid, but continually escaping from it with its sweeping, 
curling growth. Fruit large and beautiful, oblong, curved pyri- 
form ; stem long, curving to the smaller side, set in a slight de- 
pression with a shoulder on the larger side ; a rich, clear yellow 
when ripe; cheek marked with russet spots; flesh a little irregular 
in quality, but usually buttery, melting to a remarkable degree 
with a delicious sugary, sparkling flavor. Does not succeed on 
Quince. Season, first to middle of October. 



Napoleon. 

Medaille, I Eoi de Borne, 

Sucree Douce, | Poire Liard. 

8EPTBMBEB AND OCTOBER, 

This beautiful and delicious pear has only in few instances 
sustained its European reputation in this country. It has not 
generally succeeeded on the Quince ; on the Pear it is a beautiful 
and vigorous grower. From observation, I conclude that strong, 
rich clay soils are best suited to it, and that it does only moderately 
well on light or porous ones. Its foliage is peculiarly beautiful, 
having large glossy leaves like the lemon tree. 

Fruit, medium to large size, with very smooth, clear, green skin, 
ripening to a pale clouded yellow. Stem, stoutish and rather 
short, set in a slight depression ; calyx in a broad shallow basin. 
Flesh white, melting, being but little more than so much sprightly 
vinous juice when perfect. Many cultivators are confident that 
the older trees will quite uniformly bring the fruit to perfection, 
with proper care in ripening. 

It is certainly, when in perfection, one of the highest flavored 
pears, containing, as has been said, so great an abundance of de- 
licious juice. Its most serious defects are, the small size it attains 
in unfavorable soils, and the occasional spotting and cankering 
characteristic of the White Doyenne. 

It has the same thin smooth skin, as the latter pear — a peculiar- 
ity of those pears which canker. 



11* 



250 



VARIETIES. 



NOUVEAU POITEAU. 
HOVBMBEB. 

Fig. 106. 




A vigorous, handsome tree, the fruit of which, Colonel Wilder's 
description, in 1850, has not too highly colored. In size, the fruit 
often nearly equals the Bartlett; obtuse pyriform, somewhat 
sunken near the neck; stem short, stoutish, set without any 
depression; calyx very open, with the parts turned back. The 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



2ol 



fruit is not attractive, being of an opaque green, with an occa- 
sional blush on the cheek • but its melting, juicy character, and 
rich, sugary flavor, delights every palate. To insure perfection, it 
should be grown on the Quince. 



Onondaga. 
Swan's Orange. | Orange. 

6EPTEMBEB TO KOVEMBEB. 



Fig. 106. 




252 



VABIETIES. 



In a rich, strong, clay soil, this is a noble, beautiful, and deli- 
cious fruit, but it is liable to great variation. The tree is quite 
distinguishable by its vigorous and naturally pyramidal form of 
light grayish shoots. It is very productive, and grows equally 
well on Pear or Quince. The fruit, when perfect, is melting, but- 
tery, and juicy, but always a little granular, and sometimes acid. 
It is of a rich, deep yellow, relieved by russet dots ; and from its 
color and obovate shape, was named Orange. It is more often an 
obtuse pyriform, thickest in the centre, divided into five lobes, 
between the centre and calyx. It is a splendid market fruit, not 
always first-rate, and only adapted to certain localities. Its 
average is equal to that of the Diichesse; but the largest never 
equals in size the best specimens of the Duchesse. 



Oswego Beurre. 

OOTOBEB TO DECEMBEE. 
fig. 107. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



253 



Originated in Oswego, New York, by Mr. W. Read. Its great, 
hardiness, long-keeping, and excellence, make it worthy of general 
cultivation. It is vigorous and productive. Fruit medium size, 
oblate roundish, a beautiful cinnamon russet, becoming yellowish 
when ripe. Stem short, set deep in a very regularly rounded 
basin. Flesh buttery, melting, juicy, high-flavored, and aromatic. 



Parsonage. 



8BFTEUBBB. 

Fig. 108. 




254 VARIETIES. 

01 the same origin as the Church, and nearly equal excellence. 
Fruit from the medium size to large, obtuse pyriform, andobovate; 
skin nearly orange yellow, with a dull red blush, and somewhat 
russety ; stem short, thick, fleshy at its insertion ; flesh melting, 
sugary, with rich sparkling juice ; high flavored, but a little coarse 
and granular. 

Paradise d'Automne. 

Calebasse Bosc. | Princesso Marianne. 

Maria Nouvelle. 

Generally mistaken at first sight, for the Beurre Bosc, which it 
closely resembles. But the tree of the Bosc is comparatively 
feeble, while that of the Paradise is strong and vigorous. Fniit 
large, pyriform, tapering up upon the stem, which is often nearly 
two inches long and curved ; skin, a rich, yellowish brown russet. 
Flesh white, buttery, of very rich delicious flavor. 



Colmar Gris. 

Passe Colmar Epinceaux. 
Colmar Souveraine. 
Colmar Preule. 



Passe Colmar. 

Ananas d'Hiver. 
Colmar Hardenpont. 
Souveraine d'Hiver. 
Fondante de Mons. 



Passe Colmar Gris. 

" " Nouveau. 

Colmar Doree. 
Fondante de PaniseL 



NOVEMBER TO JAKTTAEY. 

There are many other besides these m.ore common synonyms. 
It is such an abundant bearer, that the fruit, especially on young 
trees, must be thinned to one-third or one-half, to come to perfec- 
tion. The growth is often so luxuriant as to absorb too much the 
energies of the tree in one direction, unless pinched back. 

This variety affords a fine comparison with the Duchesse, show- 
ing the cause of more or less abundant fruiting after abundant 
blossoming. In the Passe Colmar the pistils and stamens of every 
flower are strongly and perfectly developed. While in the Duch- 
esse many are imperfect, and but a comparatively small number 
of pears are produced. 

The fruit grows in clusters, fair size, and first-rate quality when 
thinned ; flesh yellowish white, buttery, melting, juicy ; rich aro- 
matic flavor. It needs care and shelter in ripening. It is obtuse 
pyriform; sides suddenly depressed above the centre, giving the 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 



255 



appearance of a loKg pyriform whose base had been pressed up and 
swollen at the centre. Skin becomes whitish-yellow long before 
maturity, ripening to a bright yellow, with russet brown spots. 
Stem long, inserted without depression ; calyx open ] basin shallow 



ROSTIEZER, 



A fine little summer pear, from Germany, and though not long 
in this country, has gained 



hosts of friends. And al- 
though we must not expect 
large size and high flavor 
in summer pears, this vari- 
ety usually approaches near- 
est to the fine rich flavor of 
our best autumn pears. It 
is very juicy and sweet, with 
a pleasant aromatic taste. 
Pyriform, with a long slen- 
der, curved stem. Skin a 
yellowish-green, often with 
a sunny-brown cheek. Tree 
vigorous, growing well on 
the Quince. 

It is like all the summer 
pears, very greatly improved 
by gathering before becom- 
ing quite ripe : and the 
terms of quality bestowed 
upon them will never be 
found appropriate or truth- 
ful, except under this con- 
dition. 



Fig. 109. 




256 



VARIETIES. 




Native. Fruit, medium to large size ; beautiful yellowish 
brown ; the cheek a rich, deep, reddish brown; remarkably smooth 
skin: almost bergamot-shaped, remarkably regular; stem inserted 
without depression ; rich, juicy, melting, high-flavored, when first- 
rate ; quite often insipid, tending to mealiness and rot at the core, 
when over-ripe. Tree handsome, vigorous, productive, not suffi- 
ciently proved on the Quince. During October. 



ADDITIONAL LIST. 

SOLDAT LaBOUREUR. 
OOTOBEB AND NOVQMBEB. 

Fig. 111. 



257 




It is quite surprising that this pear has not made more progress in 
public esteem. Tree remarkably vigorous, rampant grower, diffi- 
cult to restrain, but, with care, forming good pyramids. The fruit 
I consider of the nighest excellence. It is medium to large size, 
nearly obtuse pyriform, with quite sunken sides, which recede 
suddenly near the centre, giving the lower half a swollen appear- 
ance. Skin quite yellow while hard and unripe, ripening to a 
very bright yellow witli small russet dots. Stem long, quite thick, 



258 



VAKIETIES. 



curved, basin small and shallow. It has often, even when quiie 
melting, coarse particles in the flesh : but it is so rich, juicy, and 
sweet, high-flavored, or occasionally perfumed, that it must rank 
best. The flavor is best on the Quince. 



St. Michael Archange. 

OOTOB EK. 

The tree of this variety is of unsurpassed elegance. Fruit, long 



pyriform, large, 
greenish yellow, 
dotted with rus- 
set. Stem not 
long, quite fleshy 
at base, set with- 
out cavity. Flesh 
melting, some- 
what granular, 
full of rich, aro- 
matic juice, and 
when in perfec- 
tion, excelled by 
few. Excellent 
on quince or pear, 
and very produc- 
tive. 

This pear has 
had the fortune 
of many other 
fruits, to acquire 
a reputation for 
mediocrity, be- 
cause it was 
judged from fruit 
taken from young 



Fig. 112. 




ADDITIONAL LIST. 



250 



Tyson. 



LATE IN ATJGTT8T. 



A native of the vicinity of Philadelphia, known before the pre- 
sent century. It has 



never come into gene- 
al cultivation, though 
recommended by the 
American Pomologi- 
cal Society. A vigor- 
ous and upright grow- 
er, young shoots red- 
dish brown; a very 
tardy, but abundant 
bearer. Fruit, small 
to medium, pyriform, 
tapering to the stem, 
which is long, curved, 
and set with a fleshy 
junction, usually swol- 
len on one side ; dull 
yellow, with russet 
red blush on the cheek, 
often with dark, al- 
most black, spots. 
Flesh white, melting, 
and juicy, with rich, 
sugary, aromatic fla- 
vor. For most local- 
ities, perhaps, fully 
equal to the Blood- 
good. Should be 
grown on the Quince 
on account of its tar- 
diness 



Fig. 113. 




260 



VAEIETIEtS. 



Waterloo, 



Fondante Charmeuse, 
Desiree Van Mons, 
Excellentissima, 
Beurre Charmeuse, 



Belle Excellent, 
Delices des Charmeuses, 
Beurre de Waterlo, 
Due de Brabant. 



O T O B E B AND NOVEMBKE, 



A beautiful, ex- 
cellent Belgian 
Pear, more com- 
monly known as 
Fondante Char- 
meuse. It is vig- 
orous and produc- 
tive, and promises 
well for general 
cultivation. Fruit 
large, pyriform, 
with uneven sides; 
calyx large; basin 
rather deep and 
irregular ; stem 
long and curved, 
set in flesh rising 
to meet it : flesh 
verybuttery, melt- 
ing with abund- 
ant rich, vinous 
juice ; (•kin green- 
ish, with deep 
crimson blush. 



Fig. 114. 




PAKT IX.— GATHERIIS^G, MARKETII^G, A]S"D 
FRUIT-ROOMS. 

SOILS AS AFFECTING QUALITY OF PEAKS. 

There is nothing more striking in the cultivation of this frnii 
than the variation of flavor and texture in the same varieties, on 
different soils. This causes the vexatious contradictions respect- 
ing the value of any and every variety. To one, the Louise Bonne 
de Jersey seems to deserve all the execration, and to another all 
the adulation, which words can express. 

The color of any variety also varies on different soils, so that 
the fruit almost defies identification. But this change is as often 
the result of cultivation. The Louise Bonne de Jersey and the 
Beurre Diel are particularly noted for their superiority on sandy 
loams, while the Onondaga and Virgalieu are best on strong clay 
soils. 

The adaptation of soils to different varieties can only be ascer 
tained by individual experiment. 

THINNING FRUIT. 

Good soils, fine cultivation, healthy and vigorous trees, and all 
the other requisites of pear-growing, will often fail of producing 
fine fruit, if all that sets is allowed to remain on the tree. The 
fruit of the Bartlett, Dearborn's Seedling, the Louise Bonne de 
Jersey, and many other varieties, will set in such quantities, that 
if thinning is neglected, not one half will reach full size, or acquire 
their true flavor Besides, these varieties yield fruit so early, that 
the trees would be ruined by this precocious fruitfulness. Two 
years after planting, these varieties will commence bearing, and 
not more than from two to a dozen specimens should be allowed 
to ripen annually on each tree, until the fifth year. The period 
( 261 ) 



262 GATHERINii, MARKETING, AND FKUIT-ROOMS. 

for thinning is, when the pears are from a half to three quarters 
of an inch in diameter ; for, as many fall soon after forming, it is 
not until then the healthy and perfect ones can be distinguished. 
Not more than one-half of the thinning should be done at once, 
and the others may be allowed to remain until we can ascertain 
the imperfect fruit to be removed. 

GATHERING. 

There are but few of the finer varieties that are not improved 
by gathering before they are fully ripe. Not a few have been 
discarded as unworthy of cultivation, which, by early picking, im- 
prove so as to rank among the first in excellence. Several varie- 
ties rot at the core when left upon the tree till fully ripe, which 
will keep for weeks when picked earlier. Among these are, the 
Flemish Beauty, Beurre Diel, and sometimes the Louise Bonne de 
Jersey. 

The true test of the proper condition for gathering is, the cleav- 
ing of the stem from the spur, without breaking, when slightly 
raised. Some varieties, indeed, should not be left so long even as 
this ] the fruit should not be picked in a wet and cloudy day, or in 
early morning when the dew is upon it, as its flavor is much 
affected by the moisture, and its keeping properties much injured. 
When it is necessary to gather it under such circumstances, it 
should be exposed to the light and air until completely dry. Pears 
picked in the middle of a sunny day are much superior in flavor, 
and keep better ; early gathering is only necessary for the summer 
and autumn varieties. On the other hand, the late-keeping and 
winter kinds should be picked as late in the season as the frost 
will allow. Some of them, such as the Easter Beurre, require a 
long season to mature. 

A dry and moderately cool apartment should be appropriated to 
the storage and ripening of summer fruits, and to no other pur- 
pose at the same time. 

There is no doubt, that under certain conditions of heat arid 
moisture, absorption as well as evaporation goes on through 
the skin of the pear. If vegetables are stored in one part of the 
room, harnesses and lumber in another, and decaying apples and 



MARKETING PEARS. 263 

peaches, and perhaps the rubbish and debris of last year's opera- 
tions remain in a third, feculent exhalations are absorbed by the 
skin of the fruit in sufficient quantities to change its flavor. 

Mr. Wm. Keed, of Elizabeth, whose nursery is almost the per- 
fection of taste and skill, after having expressed strong disapproval 
of the quality of the Vicar, at the meeting of the Pomological 
Society, writes, with characteristic frankness, to the President : " I 
must withdraw my observations against the Vicar, for since our 
meeting I have ripened mine in a new fruit-room, and found the 
fruit perfectly melting — more than good — nearly first-rate." 

MARKETING PEARS. 

A number of pear cultivators have experienced great disappoint- 
ment in the marketing of fine fruit, from the indifferent prices 
offered. This has always been entirely due to improper gathering 
and ripening. Marketmen will not buy fruit already ripe, to be 
kept for several days for sale to the retailers, who, in turn, must 
keep it as long for sale to the consumers ; nor will the retailers buy 
pears entirely green, as few of them are sufficiently acquainted 
with the varieties, to be certain how they will ripen up in color 
and in flavor. 

Some of the fruits should ripen in the hands of the large dealers, 
that they may be exhibited as samples, being put in their hands 
when green and hard. The great mistake usually made by pear- 
growers is, to send the fruit to market after ripening, in such a 
condition that it will not bear transportation, and often reaches 
its destination badly jammed, if not a mass of rottenness. 

The second error is, for the grower to endeavor to market his 
own fruit. Few retailers will, in such cases, offer more than one- 
third or one-half of the price they expect to pay when their trade 
demands an immediate supply. 

Bruising in the gathering is not unfrequently the cause of a low 
price. Bruised fruit will not bring one quarter of the current 
rate. The rules which should guide a fruit-grower in marketing 
his fruit are these : 

1. Summer and autumn varieties must be picked, and sent to 
market when green and hard, must be packed tight in barrels or 



2f)4 GATHERING, MARKETING, AND FRUIT-ROOMS. 

cases, with coarse matting around the sides, top, and bottom, so 
that they cannot shake about. 

2. They must be directed plainly to some reputable commission 
salesman, whose entire business is the sale of fruit, giving him 
instructions to keep them, until, in his judgment, they would sell 
to the best advantage. The price thus obtained will usually far 
exceed that which the grower could procure for himself. 

3. The price of pears is governed by their color and size, as 
well as by their flavor. The Seckel is the only exception to the 
rule, that none but yellow pears will command the highest price. 

COLORING AND RIPENING OF SUMMER AND AUTUMN 
PEARS. 

While many varieties will ripen upon the tree with rich golden 
or crimson colors, like the Bartlett and Seckel, all varieties of 
pears will attain a richer tint as well as higher flavor by a little 
attention. For the attainment of the best result, darkness, warmth, 
and masses of fruit are necessary. The fruit picked'green should 
be exposed long enough to become perfectly dry, and is then packed 
in cloth-lined barrels and cases. The following, from a report of 
a Committee of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, exhibits 
the results of attention to minute particulars : 

" Mr. John Gordon, of Brighton, Mass., cultivates between three 
and four acres, the most part of which is trenched and under-drained, 
and almost entirely covered with pear trees, thickly planted, two-thirds 
of which are on quince stocks. Mr. G. raises but few varieties, and 
those such as he finds sell most readily in the market, and make the 
most profitable return. All his fruit is carefully picked by hand ; and 
some five or six days before designing it for market, it is carefully 
packed away in boxes twenty inches square, and six or eight in depth, 
with a woollen cloth lining at the bottom, on which is placed one layer 
of pears ; that is covered with woollen cloth, and another layer of pears; 
when the box is covered more thickly with woollen cloth, and placed 
away for what he calls the sweating process, which gives the fruit a 
rich coloring, and ripens it for market. Mr. Gordon states that cotton 
does not produce the same effect, nor ripen the fruit so fast. And that 
the result of this care is best seen in the prices obtained in marketing ; 
for wliile hi^j Bartletts were vieldinc: him ten dollars a bushel in Boston, 



RIPENING OF WINTER TEARS. 265 

Other wagons by the side of his contained pears of that variety which 
were sold for only three dollars a bushel, on account of their unripened 
condition." 

RIPENING OF WINTER PEARS. 

Much chagrin has been experienced by those who, for the first 
time, have attempted to ripen winter pears. Many varieties pro- 
claimed by the books as ripening from December to April, obsti- 
nately persist in becoming' melting and luscious in November and 
early December. 

The Winter Nelis, the Lawrence, the Beurre d'Hiver, and others, 
attain this delicious maturity in the early part of December, in- 
stead of keeping sound and hard till February. But the most 
disheartening and vexatious phase of the matter is, the withering, 
shrivelling, and premature rotting of the pears, to which a still 
later maturity has been attributed. The Easter Beurre, Glout 
Morceau, Doyenne d'Aleii9on, lose a great quantity of their juice 
by evaporation, and resemble a potato kept one year, quite as 
much as a pear. 

The Pear, unlike the Apple, has little or no oleaginous matter 
deposited upon the skin, to prevent the rapid evaporation of its 
juice, and preserve it from shrivelling, so that the porous and un- 
protected skin of the Pear readily allows its juice to escape. In 
all efforts to preserve it, therefore, we must keep in view this 
defect. Some attempts to form an artificial covering by varnishes. 
&c., have been made, but they have all been conducted without 
reference to the conditions necessary for ripening, being only in- 
tended for the preservation of the fruit. 

The law which governs these conditions may be stated as fol- 
lows : As it is only hy contact with the atmosphere that pears can 
be ripened^ and as that very atmosphere abstracts the vital fluids of 
the fruit, it becomes a necessity that the pear should not be in con- 
tact with free or moving atmosphere until the period of ripening has 
arrived. 

The Pear, like the Apple, is composed of the proximate elements, 
starch, sugar, and albumen, with water and malic acid. The ripen- 
ing of the fruit is the completion of that chemical process by which 
starch is changed into sugar, and is always the first step towards 

12 



266 GATHERING, MARKETING, AND FRUIT-ROOMS. 

decay. Fruit has reached the point of highest excellence when it 
contains the greater quantity of sugar, and the sugar in contact 
with the albumen has not commenced the putrid or acetous fer- 
mentation. 

By protecting them from free atmosphere m close cases, and by 
preservation in a cool apartment, we are enabled to delay the ripen- 
ing and prevent the withering of pears. There is, however, a 
fixed limit to this preservation. The inherent tendency to decay, 
which pervades all organized matter, prevents us from more than 
temporarily postponing it. The Duchesse d'Angouleme, which 
may, by skillful management, be kept till Christmas, can by no 
means be preserved as long as the Easter Beurre. 

After a pear has become somewhat withered, it ca,n never ripen 
fairly, as sufficient water is not present to perfect the change. It 
will be seen at once, that all the elaborate instruction for shelving 
an apartment, and laboriously placing the fruit in single layers 
thereon, so as not to touch, arc in entire contradiction to the rules 
above noted. It has confounded many an amateur, to find his 
plain and unscientific neighbor with an abundance of pears at 
Christmas, while his own had all long before decayed. 

A gentleman who had but half a bushel of Glout Morceau 
Pears, preserved them till late in January, bj ihe following plan: 
A barrel was half filled with sound Baldwin apples, in November, 
the pears placed upon them, and the barrel filled with apples, and 
put away in a dry cellar ; when taken out, the pears were fresh 
and green as when first picked, needing but an exposure of a week 
or more in a warm room to become golden in color and deliciously 
melting and juicy. 

All our winter pears need a somewhat longer season than we 
usually have north of New York City. This renders their quality 
a little uncertain ; but some attention to their growth will usually 
obviate this uncertainty. The large amount of acid juice which 
they contain must be overcome by the alcoholic or saccharine 
change. If the amount of the sugar-producing principle which 
the trees derive from the soil, or from the atmosphere, is too small, 
the ripening will, necessarily, be imperfect. The true remedy for 
this would naturally seem to be, that which practice has proved 



FEUTT-KOOMS. 267 

to be correct. The small-sized and badly-shaped fruit must be 
thinned out early in the season. The rest should be allowed to 
remain on the tree as long as safe from freezing, and packed away 
soon after gathering, in cases with limited ventilation. Judgment 
must be exercised in determining the amount of fruit to remain on 
a tree. The quantity of winter pears must be less than is allow- 
able in the case of summer or autumn pears. 

Without question, winter pears, like other fruit, can only ripen 
perfectly in masses. There is some undiscovered influence in the 
contact of fruit with fruit, that gives to masses a perfection of 
flavor unattainable with small quantities. 

FRUrr-KOOMS. 
For efiecting these conditions of ripening, expensive structures, 
fruit-houses, and rooms have been erected, and it is but just to 
say, have, in many cases, resulted only in disappointment. When 
one has not a good dry cellar, it may become necessary to provide 
a fruit-room, and the reason why cellars are not generally suitable 
for preserving fruit is, that they are usually too damp; they 
should be of low and even temperature, and dark. Fruit-rooms 
should be built with double walls, confining a stratum of air be- 
tween, which is sometimes more perfectly accomplished by filling 
in with dry tan, charcoal dust, and similar substances. There 
should be but one window, and that fitted with double sashes. 
Ventilators should be provided, which should be allowed to change 
the air of the room only sufficiently to prevent its becoming feculent 
and damp. No decaying fruit should be permitted to remain in 
the room, nor any vegetables or substances having odor. A gentle- 
man who had expressed much disappointment with the flavor of 
several fine varieties of pears, was greatly surprised by having the 
cause of the inferiority of his fruit pointed out. He at once com- 
menced removing from his fruit room all the materials belonging 
to the harness and lumber-room, the decaying matter^accumulated 
in corners and boxes, and finished with thoroughly cleansing and 
whitewashing the walls. The pears ripened in the room, there- 
after, were not only a source of gratification in their fine flavor, 
but of surprise at the means of their perfection. Other fruiia 



268 GA-THEKING, MAKKIETrNa, AND FRDIT-KOOMS. 

may be exposed on shelves, but pears should be inclosed in 
boxes with tight-fitting covers, or if the quantity is large, in well- 
made barrels, headed up. A fruit-house, thus arranged and man- 
aged, would be a profitable adjunct to a fruitery. But for most 
amateurs, a dark closet in the house, or a room fitted up in the 
cellar, or even the cellar itself, kept clean and sweet, will suffice. 
For small quantities of pears, cheese-boxes, with close covers, have 
been found cheap and convenient. These should be always freed 
from the odor of cheese, by cleansing in hot water, with soda or 
potash. It has been recommended and practiced by many to wrap 
pears in paper, cotton, and similar substances ; but I have found 
all such preparations worse than useless. They not only absorb 
the moisture of the pears more rapidly than the atmosphere, but 
they abstract the aroma of the fruit, and leave it comparatively 
tasteless. These substances being carbonaceous, act as absorbents 
of the peculiar flavor, like charcoal. 

Mr. Barry informed me, that after many years of experience, 
he had found the most eff"ective means of preserving winter pears 
to be : late gathering ; packing away carefully none but sound 
fruit, in close barrels, leaving them in an open shed, only protected 
from rain and direct rays of the sun, as long as the temperature is 
above the freezing-point. 

The practical difficulties in the use of fruit-rooms seem to have 
been overcome by Mr. Schooley. The accompanying plan of his 
Preservatory has appeared in the Country Gentleman^ and Ameri- 
can Agriculturist. From the latter, the description of its con- 
struction, and the rationale of its effect is extracted. 

Our illustration represents one-half of a building, supposed to 
be divided through the middle, from the ridge-pole to the ground, 
in order to better show the interior arrangements. This structure 
may be a large one, twenty or thirty feet each way, or only a 
small room of but a few feet in size. 

The side- walls, w. w, and the lower and upper floors, / and u, 
are made double, being filled in with saw-dust. The upper floor, 
however, consists of a single layer of boards, nailed upon the under 
side of the joists, with the saw-dust piled on loosely, a foot or more 
in thickness. Above this, is an open space or garret, under the 




269 



rafters or roof, with holes in each gable-end to admit a free circu 
lation of air. The main room is divided into two compartments — 
the fruit-room and ice-room — by the partition d. The partition d 
unites with the walls on both front and rear, but a small opening 
of a few inches is left both above and below it — that is, between 
the whole length of the lower and upper edges and the floor and 
the ceiling. The ice, as represented, is piled up in a compact mass 
in the right division, and covered in the usual manner with straw. 
A small vacant space, v. is left between the ice and the division- 



270 GATHERING, MARKETING, AND FKTJIT-K00M8. 

wall, though this is not necessary, unless the entire body of ice ia 
so compact and frozen together as to prevent the air from circulat- 
ing through it. The floor, under the ice, descends to the right 
from /, so as to carry any waste water out at o. There is an 
ingenious arrangement in the waste-pipe to prevent the access of 
air or vermin. It will readily be seen, that before the water rises 
high enough to overflow the right projection, or gate, the upper or 
left-hand gate dips down into it, so that the opening is always 
closed with water. 

The air around and among the ice will always be kept cool. It 
will, consequently, settle downward, and flow along under the 
division-wall, d, and into the lower*part of the fruit-room. At the 
same time, the warmer air will flow into the ice-room through the 
opening over the division- wall. The arrows show the direction 
of the currents of air. This motion will always be kept up so 
long as the air in the fruit-room is in the slightest degree warmer 
than that in the ice-room. We see, then, that by such an arrange- 
ment the fruit-room is practically kept nearly as cool as if actually 
filled with ice. 

There is another important end secured by this arrangement, 
viz., that the air in the fruit-room is kept very dry, or free from 
moisture. The air always contains more or less of invisible water 
floating in it. The amount of water in the air depends upon its 
temperature. The warmer air of the fruit-room takes up moist- 
ure from the articles there ; but when it passes over to the ice, 
being there cooled, it gives up a portion of this moisture to the ice, 
flows back below in a drier condition, to take up more moisture as 
it is warmed again. This change goes on unceasingly. 

At e is seen the entrance to the store-room, in which may be 
kept all kinds of food, vegetables, fruit, &c. Should the air need 
changing at any tim«, to get rid of odors, it is done thus : Just 
under the ceiling is seen a flat slide. Moving this to the left, two 
holes through it will be brought under the two ventilators, one 
leading into the open air above, the other into the garret. When 
this is done, the fresh air from the garret will settle into the ice- 
room, while the warm air in the fruit-room will ascend through 
the larger ventilator, and pass off". 



CATALOGUE OF PEARS, 



271 



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C u^ T .A. L O C3- XJ E 

OP 

VAKIETIES OF PEARS OF FOREIGN ORIGIN, 

WITH THEIR SYNONYMS IN ITALICS. 



Abbe Mongein. 
Abbe Edouard. 
Agathe de L'Esconr. 
Ah! Mon Dieu. 

D'^Abondance. 

H'Araour. 
Alberty. 

Alexandre Berkmans. 
Alexandre Bivort. 
Alexandre Lambre. 
Alexandrina. 
A Longiie Queue. 
Alphonso Karr. 
Ambrette. 

Epineuse. 
Amlre Jobannet. 

Saint-Jea/ii. 
Ananas. 

Angelique de Bordeaux. 
Angelique de Eome. 
Angleterre d'Hiver. 
Angora. 

Arlequin musque. 
Aston town. 
Auger. 

Auguste de Boulogne. 
Augustine Lelieur. 
Aurate. 

Adelaide de Eeves. 
Alpha. 

Ananas de Courtrai. 
Ananas d'Ete. 
Arbre Courbe. 

ATTiiral. 

Colmar Qharna/y. 
Auguste Boyer. 
Autumn Colmar. 
Amadote. 

B&xirre Knox. 

Madot. 

Beurre, Blanc de Capu- 
cins. 
Ambrette. 

Ambrette Epineufe. 



Angelique de Bordeaux. 
Ariiaud Bivort. 
Althofpo Crassane. 
Ambrosia. 

Earlij Beurre. 
Andeterre. 

Eiujlish Beurre. 

Beurre d'' Angleterre. 

Bartlett. 
Williams. 
Williams' Bon Chretien. 

Poire Ouillaume. 

De la Vault. 

Clement 
Barbancinet 
Baronne de Melo. 

Adele de Saint-Ceras. 
Beau present d'Artois. 

Present royal de Naples. 
Belle de Bruxelles. 

Beurre de Bruxelles. 
Belle de Bruxelles without 

kernel. 
Belle D'Aout, or August. 
Belle de Ferron 
Belle de Noel. 

Apres Noel. 

Fondante Noel. 

Souvenir Esperen. 
Belle du Plessis. 
Belle Julie. 

Alexandre Ilelie. 
Belle Vernie, or Vernis. 

Deliees de 3fons. 
Belle Epiiie du Mas. 

Dumas. 

Epine de Rochefort. 

Epine de Limoges, 

De Rocliechouart. 

Due de Bordeaux. 

Epine du Mas. 

Epine. du Rochois. 

Epine du Rochoir 

1 27f> ) 



Belle Fondante. 
Belle et Bonne. 

Schone und Oute. 

Gracieuse. 
Belle lucrative. 

Bergamotte lucrative. 

Beurre lucratif. 

Bergamote Fi'evee. 

Fondante d'Autoinne. 

Grosilliere. 

SeignetLr Esperin. 
Bellissime d'Ete. 

A deux yeux. 

Jargonnelle of the 
French. 

Salnne d'Ete. 

Supreme. 
Bergamot Buffo. 

Crapaud. 

Beurre Beauchatnps. 

Beauchamps. 

Bergamotte Cadette. 

Poire de Cadet. 

Belle de Brissae, 
incorrectly Ogonet. 
Bergamote, Crassanne. 

Crassanne. 
Bergamote, a Feuilles Pan- 

achees. 
Bergamote Crassanne d'Ete 
Bergamote d'Angleterre. 
Bergamote d'Automne. 

Grosse Ambrette. 
Bergamote d'Ertryeher. 
Bergamote d'Ete, 

Beurre hlanc or wTvUe. 

Beurre d'Et-e. 

Beurre Ronde. 

3lilan Blanc. 

Milan de la Beuvriere. 

Mouille Bouche. 
Bergamote d'Ete FanacheCk 
Bergamote Drouet. 
Bercfamote Dussart. 



CATALOGLTi OF PEAJiS. 



277 



Bergamote (le Heimbourg.' 

Bergamote Esperen. | 

Bergamotte Gansels. 

JS'roca.s Bergamot, 

Ides' Bergamot. \ 

Staunton. 

Bonne Rouge. 

Gurles Beurre. 

Diamant. 
Bergamotte d'Esperin. 
Bergamotte Gaudry. 
Bergamotte Lesefle. 
Bergamotte de Millepieds. 
Bergamotte d'Hollande. 

Holland Bergamotte. 

Beurre cPAlencon. 

Bergamotte d'Alencon. 

Jardin de Jougers. 

Bergainotte de Fougere. 

Amoselle. 

Lord Glieeneys. 

Sarah. 
Bergamot, Easter. 

Bergamotte de Paques. 

Bergamotte d' River. 

Bergamotte de Bugi. 

Bergamotte de Toulouse 

Boherts's Keeping. 

Winter Bergamotte. 

Paddrington. 

Royal Fairling. 

Tiding. 

St. Herplain d'Hvver. 

Doyenne d^Uiver. 

Soidat. 
Bergamot, Lageret. 
Besamot, Suisse. 

Swiss Bergamot. 
Bergamot, Autumn. 

English Bergamot. 

Common Bergamot. 

York Bergamot. 

English Autumn Berg- 
amot. 
Bergamot, Early. 
Bergamot, Summer. 
Bergamot, Hampden's. 

Summer Bergamot. 

Bergamot d'Angleterre. 

FingaVs. 

Bergamotte d'Ete. 

Scotch Bergamot. 

Ellanrioch. 
Bergamotte de Malines. 
Bergamotte de Parthenay. 

Poireau. 
Bergamotte, Eose. 
Beurre Antoine. 

Saint Ger)n ain fondant. 
Beurre Antoinette. 
Beurre Auneniero. 
Beurre Bachelier. 
Beurre Beauchamp. 
Beurre Benoist. 

Benoits. 

Beurre Augusle Benoit. ; 



Beurre Berokmana. 
Beurre Biemont. 
Beurre blanc do Nantes. 

Beurre de Nantes, 

Beurre Nantais. 
Beurre Bosc. 

Boscs ThascJierMrne. 
Beurre, Easter. 

Bergamotte de la Pent- 
ecote. 

Beurre de la Pentecote. 

Beurre d''Hiver deBrux- 
elles. 

Doyenne d''River. 

Doyenne du Printemps. 

Beurre Boupe. 

Du Patre. 

Biurre de Paques. 

Phillipe de Paques. 

Bezi Chawmontel tres 
gros. 

Chaumontel tres gros. 

Canning. 

Seigneur dPIiver. 
Beurre Gris d'Hiver Nou- 
veau. 

Beivrre Gris d'' River. 

Beurre Gris de Lucon. 

BeurreGris Superieure 

Beurre de Fontenay, 
Beurre d'Anjou. 

Ne Plus Meuris. 

Nee Plus Meuris. 
Beurre Diel. 

Diets ButterMrne. 

Diel. 

Dorethee Boyale. 

Gros Dorethee. 

Celeste. 

Des tres Tours. 

Dillon.^ or Gros Dillon. 

Sylvanche vert d'Rvver. 

Beurre Boyale. 

Mahille. 

Beurre d' Yelie. 

De Melon. 

Melin de Kops. 

Royal. 

Dry-toren. 

Florimond. 
Beurre Ineomparahle. 
Beurre Magnifique. 
Beurre Sterkmans. 

Doyenne Sterkmans. 

Bell Alliance, 
Beurre Navez. 

Colin ar Navez. 
Beurre Kichelieu. 
Beurre d'Aremberg. 

Oi'ph eline dJ' Enghien. 

Due d''Aremherg. 

Dexrhamps. 

Colwar Deschamps. 

D' A r ember g par/ait. 

UOrpheiine. 

Beurre, des OrpheUne. 



Beurre Spenee. 
Beun-e Amande. 

Almond Pear. 

Noisette. 

Beurre Judes. 

Beurre d Angleterre. 

Longue de Narkouts. 

Monkorothy 
Beurre Fougierre. 
Beurre Beaulieu. 
Beurre Winter. 
Beurre Bennert. 
Beurre Six. 
Beurre Drapiez. 
Beurre Soulange. 
Beurre de Montgeron. 

Neto Frederick of Wir- 
teniherg. 
Beurre de Quenast. 
Beurre Scheidweiler. 
Beurre Citron. 
Beurre d'EIberg. 
Beurre Duhaume. 
Beurre de Brignais. 

Des Nonnes. 

Poire des Nones. 
Beurre Leon le Clerc 
Beurre Brown. 

Beurre Gris. 

Gray Beurre. 

Beurre d^Amboise. 

Beurre Dore. 

Beurre Isambert, 

Beurre Rouge. 

Red Beurre. 

Beurre, 

Golden Beurre. 

Beurre d''Or. 

Beurre d'A^nhleuse, 

Beurre Vert. 

Beurre du Roi, 

Isambert le Bon., 
incor. Beurre d'Anjou, 
Beurre d'Amaulis. 

Beurre d'Amanlis. 

Beurre d''Amalis. 

Wilheinmine. 
Beurre d'Amaulis, var. 
Beurre Col mar. 

Golmar d'Automne. 
Beurre Millet of Guernsey. 

MolleVs Guernsey Chavr 
tnontel. 
Beurre Ilance. 

Beurre de Ranz. 

Beurre de Flandre. 

Beymonte. 

Bon Chretien de Ranee. 

Beurre Nairchain. 

Rardenpont de Prin- 
tempfi. 

Beurre Epine. 
Beurre Bieumont. 

Beymonte. 
Beurre de Mortfontaino. 

Beurre Lefevre. 



278 



CATALOGUE OF PEAKS. 



Beurre BoIsfuneL 
Beurre de Gommery. 
Beurre de Hamptienne. 
Beurre Precoce. 
Beurre Van de Putte. 
Beurre de Beaumont. 

Be^A Vaet. 
Beurre Seutin. 
Beurre Kenrick, 
Beurre Knox. 
Beurre Bretonneau. 
Beurre Bronze. 
Beurre Brougham. 
Beurre Bruneau. 

Saint Herhlain. 

Crassanne Brutieau 
Beurre Burnicq. 
Beurre Capiaumont. 

Capiamont. 

Aurore. 
Beurre d'Angleterre. 

Arcfiuhic Charles. 

Bee d'Oie. 
Beurre d'Avoine. 
Beurre de BoUwiller 
Beurre de Koning. 
Beurre de Launay. 
Beurre de Moise. 
Beurre de Paimpol. 
Beurre de Peine. 
Beurre Charron. 
Beurre Chatenay. 
Beurre Clairgeau. 
Beurre Coloma. 

Capucine cV Autumn. 
Beurre Curtet. 

Comte Lami. 

Beurre Quetelet, 
Beurre d'AJbret. 
Beurre des Beguines. 
Beurre d'Ecole. 
Beurre Defais. 
Beurre Derouineau. 
Beurre d'Enghien. 
Beurre d'Hardenpont. 
Beurre Duval. 
Beurre Gens. 
Beurre Giffard. 
Beurre Goubault. 
Beurre Gris d'Hiver, the 

old. 
Beurre de Zurick. 
Beurre Milan d'lliver. 
Beurre Gris d'lliver de 

Lucon. 
Beurre Hamecker. 
Beurre Hardy. 
Beurre Kennes. 
Beurre Knight. 
Beurre Kossuth. 
Beurre Langelier. 
Beurre Loisel. 

our re Millet. 
Boiirre Moire. 
Beurre Mondelle. 
Beurre Noisette. 



Beurre Oudinot. 
Beurre Payen. 
Beurre Philippe Delfosse. 
Beurre Komain. 
Beurre Saint Louis. 
Beurre 8aint Nicholas. 

Duchesse d' Orleans. 
Beurre Seringe. 

Doyenne fondant, 
Beurre fiuperfin. 
Beurre Wetteren. 
Besi Liboutton. 
Besi du Caissoy or Quessoy. 

Roussette d'Anjou. 
Bezy Quessoy d^Ete. 
Besi de Chassery. 

Echassery. 
Besi de Chaumontei 

Do., Variegated. 
Bezi d'lleri. 

Bezi Royal, 

Humelbirne. 
Besi B<i8man. 
Bezi de Montigny 

Louis Bosc. 

Doyenne Musque. 

Trouve de Montigny. 

Beurre Romain. 
Bezi de La Motte. 

Beurre hlanc de Jersey. 

Bein Armandi, 
Bezy Garnier. 

Gamier. 
Besi de Vmdre. 
Bezi des Veterans. 

Rameau. 
Bezi Kspercn. 
Bezi Goubalt. 
Bezi Incomparable. 

Bezi Sanspariel. 

Bergamotte Sanspariel. 
Bezi baint Vaast, 

Beurre Beaumont. 
Bezi, Tardy. 
Bonne d Ez e. 

Bonne des JTaies. 

Bonne de Zees. 

Bor)ne de l.ongue'val. 

Belle et Bonne d'Ezee. 
Bon Uhr^ lien Fondante 
Bon Gus'ave. 
Bonn- Charlotte. 

Bon Chretien. Flemish. 

Bon Ct' retien de Turc. 
Bon < hretien d Espagne. 

Bon Chretien ^ypanish. 
Bon Chretien d'Ete. 

Gracioli. 

Reed's Seedling. 
Bon Chretien d'Miver, 

Bon Chretien d'An- 

goisse. 

Bon Chretien d'Angoisse— 

variteated. 
Bishop's I'hunib. 
Black Worcester. 



Black Pear of Worces* 

ter. 

Parkinson''s Warden, 
Bois Napoleon. 
Bon Parent. 
Bonne Emilie. 
Blanquet Alexis. 
Blanquet a Long Queue. 
Blanquet de Saintonge. 
Blanquet le Groa. 

Rot Louis. 
Blanquet le Petit. 

Blanquet a la Perle. 

Blanche Fleur. 

Cire 
Blanquet Precoce. 
Boucquia. 

Beurre Boucquia. 
Bourgeraester. 

Bouvier Bourgemester. 
Brougham. 
Bran des. 

Saint Germ^ain Brcm- 
des. 
Brialemont. 
Broom Park. 

Sohden Court. 

Cadet de Vaux. 
Caillot Kosat. 
Calebasse Bosc. 
Calebasse de Bavay. 
Calebasse Delvigne. 
Calebasse d'Ete. 
Calebasse Musk. 
Calebasse Tougard. 
Calebasse Verte. 

Calebasse Green. 
Calebasse. 

Calebasse Double Extra, 

Calebasse d'Hollande. 

Beurre de Payenc«, 
Caen de France. 
Camerlyn. 
Cassante de Mars. 
Cittinka. 

Charles Van Houghten. 
Charles Smit. 
Charles Frederick. 
Charlotte de Brower. 
Colniar d'Alost. 
Count Lelieur. 
Coinpte of Paris. 
Coiiipte of Flanders. . 
Conseilier de la Cour. 

Marechal de la Cov/r. 
Calebasse Grosse. 

Calebasse Monstre. 

Carafou 

Poire Carafour. 

Boutelle. 

Trinmphc de Nord. 

Triomphe de Haslet. 
Coin pre de Laniy. 

Beurre Curti. 

Dingier. 



CATALOGUE OF PEARS. 



279 



Marie Lowise Nora. , Croft Castle. 
Marie Louise the Sec'i 



and 
Conseiller Eanwez. 

ConaeiUer de Rarvweze. 
Coter. 

Crassane d'Hjver. 
Caperon du Mons. 
Capucin Van Mons. 
Cent Couroiines. 
Chair a Dame. 
Cherroise. 

Choice of an Amateur. 
Col mar. 

Maunne. 

De Maune. 

Incomparable. 

Winter Virgalieu. 
Col mar Artoisenet, 
Colmar d'Aremberg. 

Cartofell. 
Colmar" d'Automne Nou- 

veau. 
Colmar de Silly. 
Colmar des Invalides. 

Van Mons. 
Colmar d'Ete. 
Colmar Musque. 
Colmar Souverain. 
Coltin. 
Citron dea Carmes a Long 

Queue. 
Countesse d'Alost. 
Countesse de Lunay. 
Cops Heat. 
Cornelia. 

Crassane Althorpe. 
Catillac. 

Bon Chretien d' Amiens. 

Chartreuse. 

Gros Oilot. 

Monstre. 

Teton de Venus. 
Chaumoisine. 
Coulon Saint Marc. 

Belle de Thouars. 
Catherine Lambree. 
Cure d'CElenghem. 
Chaumontel. 

Bezi de Chaum,ontel. 

Winter Beurre. 

Beurre d' Hiver. 

Oxford Chaumontel. 
Charles of Austria. 
Clara. 

Claire. 
Clinton. 
Colmar Nfell. 
Colmar Epine. 
Comprette. 
Commodore. 
Crassane. 

Beigamotte Crassane. 

Beurre Plat. 

Cresane. 
Crawford. 



D'Aloutte. 
Dame Verte. 
De Bavay. 

Poire de Bavay. 
De Coq. 

De Deux Ors I'An. 
De Lamartine. 
Do Lestumire. 
Delices Charles. 
Delices de Jodolgne. 
Delices de Louvenjoul. 

De Loumoyan. 
Delices de la Mouse. 
Delices d'Hardenpont. of 

Angers. 
Delices d'Hardenpont. of 
Belgium. 

Fondante Pariselle. 
Delices Dumortier. 
Des Chasseurs. 
Des deux Sceurs. 
Des Templirs Blanc. 
Dingier. 

Docteur Bouvier. 
Docteur Caperon. 
Docteur Trousseau. 
De Louvain. 

Poire de Louvain 

Bezy de Louvain. 
DeSorlus. 

BergaTnotte de Sorlus. 
Desiree Cornells. 

Cornelis. 
De Tongres. 
Dundas. 

FUiot Dundas. 

Rousselet Jamin. 
Diller. 
Doyenne Eobin. 

Beurre Rdhin. 
Doyen Dillon. 

Deacon Dillon. 
Doyenne Goubalt. 
Doyenne Defais. 
Doyenne Downing. 
Doctor Lentier. 
Duchesse d'Orleans. 

Beurre Saint Nicho- 
las. 

Saint Nicholas. 
Duchesse de Berry dEte. 
Duchesse de Brabant. 
Duchess d'Angouleme. 

Des Epatonnais. 

Pezenas. 
Duchesse d'Angouleme, 

variegated. 
Duchess d'Aremberg. 
Dumortier. 
Diipuy Charles. 
Doyenne Rose. 
Duchesse de Mars. 
Dunmore. 
Douillard. 



Due de Nemours. 

Beurre Naves. 

Louis Bosc. 
Dumont Dumortier, 
Duvernay. 
Doyenne Bossouck. 

Doyenne Bossouck Nou- 
velle. 

Double Philipe. 

Beurre de Merode. 

Nouvelle Boun^ouck. 
Doyenne d'Alencon. 

Doyenne d'Hlver d'Ac- 
e^con. 

Doyenne Oris d' Hiver 
Nov/veau. 

Doyenne Marbre. 

Doyenne d' Hiver Nou- 
veau. 

St. Michal d' Hiver 
Doyenne d'Ete. 

Summer Doyenne. 

Duchesne de Berry d'M€ 
of Bivort. 
Doyenno BieuUe. 

Sieulle. 

Beurre Sieulle. 

Bergamotte Sieulle. 
Doyenne Gray. 

Oray Batter Pear. 

Gray Deans. 

Gray Doyenne. 

Red Doyenne. 

St. Mirhel Dare. 

Doyenne Galeux. 

Doyenne Roux. 

Doyenne < hivert. 

Doyen ed' Autumn. 

Red Beurre. 

Beurre Rouge. 

Doyenne Gris. 
Doyenne White. 

Virgalieu. 

St. Michael 

Doyenne Blanc. 

Doyenne. 

Yellow Butter. 

Berg aloe. 

White Beurre. 

Warwick Bergamot. 

Deans 

Bonne Ente. 

Neige iilanche. 

Saint Michal blanc. 

Snoio Pear. 

Reigner. 

Beiorre blanc. 

Poire de Simon. 

Poire 3fonHieur. 

Citron df Septembt/r, 

Kd i^serhirne. 

K'tiser d Autumn. 

Buiterldme. 

Nourelle d'Ouef. 

Dcchantsbirne. 

Valencia. 



2S0 



CATALOGUE OF PEAES 



Emile d'Hyest. 
Eliza d'Hyest. 
Emerald. 
Edouard Sageret. 
Enfant Prodigue. 
Epiue d'Ete. 

Fondante Musque. 

Satin Vert. 
Esperine. 
Eyewood. 

Elizabeth Manning's. 
Eastner Castle. 
Echassery. 

Echasserie. 

Bizi d' Echassery. 

Bizi d'Echassery. 

Jagahirne. 
Episcopal. 

Fortune. 

La Fortunee de Paris. 

La Fortunee (?w Par- 
mentier. 

Bergamotte Fortunee. 
Emerald. 

Flemish Beauty. 

Fondante des Bois. 

Belle des Bois. 

Belle de Flandres. 

Bergamotte de Flan- 
dres. 

Beiorre des Bois. 

Beurre Spence—errone- 
ously. 

Davy., or Poire Dany. 

Feodale. 

Tougaret. 

Nonvelle Gagne a 
Heme. 

Lmpercttrice de France 

Bosch Pear. 

Bosch, or BoscJi Nou- 
velle. 

BosG Sire. 
Fondante Abbret. 
Fondante de Brest. 

Cassante de Brest. 

Inconnue de Chesneau 
Fondante de Lavnille. 
Fondante ''e Malines. 
Fondante de Noel. 

Belle de Noel. 

Belle Apres Noel. 
Fondante de Millat. 
Fondante du Cornice An^ 

gers. 
Fondante Van Mons. 
Fondante Agreeable. 
Fondante des Pres. 
Forelle. 

Anx Traites. 

Grain de Corail. 
Fortunee. 
Forme de Bergamotte 

Crassp-nne. 
Foureroy d'Hiver. 



Francois. 

Frederick le Clcrc. 
Frederick de Wirtemberg. 

Beurre de Montgeron— 
erroneously. 
Florimond Paren . 
Fleur de Neige. 
Snowilower. 
Figue de Naples. 

Oomtense de Frenol, 

De Vigne Pdoie. 

Beurre Bronzee. 

Fig Pear of Nap,- is. 
Figue d'Alencon. 

Verte Longur de la 
Mayenne. 

Figue d'Hiver. 

Gabrourelis Seedling. 
Geant. 

General de Lamoricfere. 
General Dutillewe. 
Golden Beurre of BaU 1 . 
Gloire de Cambroul. 
Gracioli de Jersey. 
Jersey Gracioli. 
Groom Princess. 
Gros Lat'veau. 
Gansal's Seckel. 
Gansel's Late Bergan v)t^ \. 
Gil Gil. 

Garde d'Ecosse. 

Dagobert. 
Glace d'Hiver. 
Grand Salomon. 

Loids Philippe. 
Gros Lucis. 
Garnier. 
Girardin. 
Gloward. 
Got. 
Graslin. 
Grand Soliel. 
Gris de Chin. 
Gros Cotelain. 
Gustave de Bourgogne. 
General Bosquet. 
General Canrobert. 
G.^.neral de Lourmel. 
Gideon Paridant. 
Gra-^lin. 
Grosse Marie. 
Gios Rousselet a'Aout. 
Gendesheim. 
Green Citron of Bohemia. 

Cltronbirne 
Green Pear of Yair. 
Green Yair. 
Glout Morceau. 

Gloux or Glou Morceau 

Beurre d" Uardenpont. 

Haidenpojit d" [liver. 

(Jolmar d' Hiver. 

Linden d'Automne. 

Beurre d'Aremberg in 
France. 



Goulu, Morceau. 
Roi de Wiuiemberg. 
Beurre de Cambron. 
Got Luck de Cambron. 
Kronprinz Ferdinand 

Heathcot. 

Heathcot de Gore. 

Gore's Heathcot. 
Hamon. 

Besi Fondant. 
Haute Montec. 
Heliote Dundas. 

Rousselet Jamain. 
Henri Bivort. 
Henri Caperon. 
Henri IV. 

Henri Quatre. 

Jaquin. 

Favori Musque. 

Beurre Ananas. 

Poire Ananas. 
Hericart de Theury. 
Hessel. 

Hazel. 
Hovey. 
Heukel. 
Henrietta. 
Henri Bivort. 
Hericart. 
Hericart de Thusy. 

Rushmore''s Bon Chre- 
tien. 
Hacon's Incomparable. 

Lncomparable Hacons. 

Jargonelle English. 

Real Jargonelle. 

Beau Present. 

Sweet Suinmer. 

Beurre de Paris. 

Cuillette. 

Cuisse Madame. 

Gros Cuisse Madame. 

Epargne. 

Saint Samson. 

Poire de Tables de$ 
Princes, 

Saint Lambert. 

Belle Verge. 
(Jargonelle, French. 

Bellissime d''Ete. 

Bellissime Supreme. 

Bellissime Jargonelle. 

Red Muscadel. 

Summer Beauty 

Bed, Cheek. 

Supreme. 

Chaumontel d'Ete. 

VermilioJi d'Els. 

Saline d'Ete. 

English Red Cheek, 
Udal, 
Jalousie de Fon'^ena\, Y<»p 

dee. 
Jean de Witte. 



CATALOGUE OF PEARS. 



281 



Julionne. 

J(J;^epbine de Malines. 

Juk-s Bivort. 

Jalousie Tardive. 

Jacquemine. 

Jaminette. 

Amtrasie. 

Beurre d' Austrassie. 

Beurre Saint Helier. 

BergamotU Cheminette. 

I'ivoUe Maroi, 

Sahine, 
Wilhelmine. 

Josephine. 

Colmar Jaminette. 
Jansenns. 
Jolivet. 
John Mouticli. 
Jules Bivort. 
Jutte. 
Jurardiel, 
Jalvie. 

Inconnu Van Mens. 
Imperiale, Oak-Leaved. 

King Edwards. 
Knight's Monarch. 
Knight's Seedling. 
Knight's Edwards. 

La Caslebirne. 

La Herard. 

La Juive. 

Laure de Glymej. 

Leopold the "First. 

Leurs. 

Long "Verte of Coxe. 

Ilouille Bouche^ erron. 

Long Green. 
Long G-reen. 
Leon le Clerc. 

Leon le Glerc Le/oal. 

Blanc- Per-JSfe. 
Little Muscat. 

Little Musk. 

Petit Musk. 

Primitive. 

Muscat Petit. 

Sept-en- Chieule. 
Louise Bonne. 

Lonise Bonne Real, 

St. Germain Blanc, 
Louise de Carcelles. 
Louise de Prusse. 
Louise Bonne de Jersey. 

Louise Bonne dJ'Avran- 
ches. 

Bonne de Zongueval. 

Beurre, or Bonne Louise 

d'Avandore. 
William the Fourth. 
Lucien Leelerc. 
Louis Uupont. 
Limon. 

Beurre Ilagersten. 

Bergamotte Louise^ 



. Lieutenant Poitevin. 
Liberale. 
La Canas. 

Bon-Parent, 
Leon Leelerc. 

Leon Leelerc Epineux. 

Mansuette, 
Marie Louise. 

Princess Parme. 

Marie Chretienne. 

Forme Marie Lowise. 

Braddick's Field Stan- 
dard. 
Marechal Dillon. 
Mar'^chal Peiissier. 
Marianne de Nancy. 
Mignonne d'iliver. 
Mitlot de Nancy. 
Marie Louise— ^Ae new. 
Martin Sec. 

Pousselet d'^ffiver. 
Madame Durien. 
Madame Elisa. 
Madeleine d' Angers. 
Marechal de Cour 

Conseilleur de la Cour. 

Due d' Orleans. 
Marquise. 
Medaille d'Or. 
Melon. 
Menagerie. 
Messir, Jean. 

3Ir. John. 

Messir Jean Gris. 

Messir Jean Golden. 

John. 

Monsieur John. 

3tessir Jean Blanc. 
Miel des Carmes. 
Monstigneur Affre. 
Monstrous Wood. 

Nain Vert. 
Muscat TAUemand. 
Muscat Kobert. 
Musquee d'Esperne. 
Michaux. 

Compte de Michaux. 
Madeline. 

Magdalen. 

Citron des Carmes. 

Green Chisel, incor. 

Early Chaumontel, in- 
correctly. 
Madeline, variegated. 
March Bergamot. 
Moccas. 
Muscat Robert, 

Poire a la Peine. 

D'Amhre. 

St. Jean Musquee Gros. 

Musk Bohine. 

Early Queen. 

Qxieen^s Pear 
Mario Parent. 



Napo^..". 

Bbu, e Napoleon. 

B<'>' I hretien Napoleon, 

Cui.i- ceof St. Helena. 

C/nnhs X. 

CI' dries d'Austria,incoT. 

Gidi'e de I'Empereur. 

JAoril, incor. 

Meahille. 

Medaille. 

Wurtemberg, incor. 

Sueree Boree. 

Itoi de Rome. 

Bonaparte. 
N I ctarine. 
Ni.Mle. 

Beurre Niel. 

Poire Neil. 

Colmar Bosc. 

Fondant e du Bois, in- 
correctly. 
Ni-ufmaisons. 

Belle Alliance. 

Neuve Maison. 

Serruvier d'Automne. 
Noiiveau Poiteau. 

Ji'etour de Rome. 

Tomhe de P Amateur. 
Kouveau Simon Bouvier. 
Nt- Plus Meuris. 
Niles. 

Omer Pasha. 
Orpheline Colroar. 
Orange d'Hiver. 
Wi7iter Orange. 

Passe Colmar. 

Passe Colmar Epineux. 

Passe Colmar 6h'is, or 
Pore. 

Passe Colmar Noxcveau. 

Pucelle Condesienne. 

Golmar Gris. 

Ananas dHiver. 

Beurre Colmar Gris. 

Precel. 

Fondante de Panisei. 

Fondante deMons. 

Beurre d'Argenson. 

Regintin. 

Colmar Hardenpont, 

Colmar Sowveraine 

Colmar Preule. 

Colmar Doree. 

Gambier, 

Celliste. 

Marotte Lucre Jaune. 

Pusent de Malines. 

U" Ananas. 
Passe Colmar of Belgium. 
Passe Colmar of France. 
Passe Colmar Musque. 
Pater Noster. 
Paquenpy. 
Peach Pear. 



282 



CATALOGUE OF PEAKS. 



Poire Peche. 

Pengethly. 

Passans du Portugal. 

Summer Portugal. 

Miller's Early. 
Paradise d'Automne. 

Calebasse Bosc. 

Maria Noti/celle. 

Princess Marianne. 
Pliillippe Goes. 
Pio IX. 

Poire d'Albret. 
Poire d'Abondance. 
Poire des Chasseurs. 
Poire de Lepine. 

Da Lepine. 

Delepine. 
Paul Ambre. 
Prevost. 

Poire Prevost. 
Prince Albert. 
Paillean. 
Pitt's Proliflc. 

Pitt's Sur passe Mari». 

Swrpasse Marie Louise^ 
incorrect. 
Princess Marie. 
Princess Charlotte. 
Princess of Orange. 

Princess Conquette. 
Pain et Vin. 

Chaumontel Anglaise. 

Chene Vert. 

Chene Vin. 
Parfum d'Aout. 
Parfum d'Hiver. 
Paul Thiens. 
Pomme. 
Prodil. 

Professor DubreuU. 
President Parigot. 
Prince Imperial. 
Princess Helene d'Orleans, 

Queen of the Low Coun- 
tries. 

Queen of Netherlands. 

Peine des Pays Bas. 
Quilette. 

Reine des Beiges. 

Keine des Poires. 

Eeine d'Hiver. 

Eevillere. 

Rushmore. 

Rondelet. 

Rostiezer. 

Rouge des Vierges. 

Eoiisselet de Cour. 

Rousselet do Bochefort. 

Rousselet d'tliver. 

Rousselet le Gros. 

Roi d'Ete. 
Rousselet variegated. 
Rousselet Perdreau. 
Koasselet de Meester. 



Ferdinand de Meester. 

Sur passe Meurice. 
Rousseline. 
Rousselon. 
Eoyale d'Ete. 

liobine. 
Royal d'Hiver. 
Rousselet Hatif. 

Early Catherine. 

Kattern. 

Cyprus Pear. 

Early Rousselet. 

Perdrean. 

Poire de Chypri. 
Rousselet de Rheioia. 

Rousselet. 

Petit Rousselet. 

Spice Pear. 

Musk Pear. 
Retour de Rome. 
Rousselet d'Esperen. 

Rousselet Double. 
Rousselet Enfant Prodigue 

Enfant Prodigue. 
Rosabirne. 
Ridelles. 

Beurre Andusson. 

Poire Ritelle. 
Rousselet Vandervecken. 
Rousselet Stuttgart. 
Rateau Gris. 

Beurre de Louvain. 

Sabine d'Hiver. 
Saint Andre. 
Saint Augustin. 
Saint Georges. 
Saint Germain. 

St. Germain Gris. 

Ineonnut Lafare. 

St. German Jaume. 
Saint Germain Van Mons. 
Saint Germain, variegated. 
Saint Germain Gris. 
Saint Ghislein. 

Quinnipiao. 

Duc/c Monarch. 
Saint Germain Brande's. 
Saint Andre. 
Saint Menin. 
Saint Isaure. 
Saint Jean Baptlste. 
Saint Joseph. 
Saint Louis. 
Saint Michel Archange. 

Plombgastet. 
Saint Vincent de Paul. 
Saint Dorethee. 

Royale. 

Nowvelle. 
Saint Denis. 
Sanguinolo. 

Sanguine de France. 
Sanguine d'ltalie. 
Sans Peau. 

Shinless. 



Poire Sanspeau. 

Fleur de Cpuignet. 
Serrurier. 

Surrier d Autonme. 

Fondante de Ifillot. 
Simon Bouvier. 
Sdegnata. 
Simon. 

Souvenir de Simon Bouvier 
Sorlus. 

Sucree de Zurich. 
Sucree Vert. 
Supreme d'Auray. 
Supreme Qulnipor. 
Suzette de Baray. 
Soldat Laboreur. 

Auguste Van Krans. 
Souveraine de Printemps. 

Poire de Printemp*. 
Souveraine d"Ete, 
Styrian. 

Supreme de Quineper. 
Surpasse Mcuris. 
Surpasse Crassane. 
Saint Pere. 

De Pape. 
Socquet. 
Sultan. 

Sucree de Corinne. 
Sucree de Iloyerswerder. 
Summer St Germain. 

Shorts St. Germain. 

St, Germain d'Ete. 

St. Germain of Martin. 
Summer Franc Real. 

Franc Real d'Ete, 

Fondante. 

Gros Micet d'Ete. 

Green Chisel. 

Green Sugar. 
Super Fondante. 
Swan's Egg. 

Moor-fowl Egg, incorrect 
Summer Rose. 

Epine Rose. 

Caillot Rosat d'Ete. 

Thorny Rose. 

Ognon. 

Epine d'Ete. 

Poire de Rose. 

Epine d'Ete Coleur 
Rose. 
Summer Bon Chretien. 

Bon Chretien d'Ete. 

Gratioli. 

Gratioli d'Ete. 

Gratioli di Roma. 

Sii/mmerGood Christian 

Musk Summer Bon 
Chretien. 

Sommer Apothiker- 
birne. 

Sommer Gute Christen- 
birne. 

Die Sommer Christea- 
birne. 



CATALOGUE OF PEAKS. 



Large Sugar. 
Sylvange. 
Bergamotte Sylvange. 
Green Sylvange. 

Tillington. 

Tar qui n de Pyrenees. 

Theodore Van Mohs. 

Thompson's. 

Thuerlinck. 

Triomphe de Jodoigne. 

Talmont. 

Tonnelet. 

Triomphe de Hasselt. 

Triomphe de Souvain. 

Triomphe de la Pomo- 

logie. 
Tavernier de Boulogne. 
Tresor d' Amour. 
Tonneau. 

Uveedales St. Germain. 

Angora. 

Poun d Pea/r. 

Beauty of Turvensen. 

Belle Angevine. 

Belle de Jersey. 

Bolivar. 

Ducfiesse de Berry. 

Duchesse de Berry 
d'Hiver. 

Grosse de Britaelles. 

Boyal d" Angleterre. 
Urbaniste. 

Beurre Pioquery. 



Count Coloma. 
St. Mearc. 
Beurre Drapiee, 
Louise d' Orleans. 
Urbaniste Seedling. 

Van Mons. Leon le Clerc. 
Valette. 
Van Assche. 
Vauquelin. 

St. Germain Vauquelin. 
Verte Longue d'Angers. 
Verte Longue Suisse. 

Verte Longue Panache. 

Oulotte de Suisse. 
Vezouziere. 

Vicompte de Spielberg. 
Vigneuse d'Esperen. 
Vingt Mars. 
Vallie Franche. 

De Vallee. 

De Renizheim. 

Bonne de Be/nizhevm. 
Virgalouse. 

Poire Glace. 

Chambrette. 

Bujaleuf. 
Vicar of Winkfield. 

Cure. 

Mon. le Cure. 

Clion. 

Cornice du Toulon. 

Belle Adrien/ne. 

Belle de Berry. 

Belle Helerea, 



Walker. 

135 of Van Mom. 
Wendell. 
Willemoz. 
Wredon. 
William Prince. 
Windsor. 

Summer Bell. 

Konge. 

Suisse, Madame. 
Winter Nells. 

Bonne de Malines. 

Colmar Nelis. 

Nelis d'Hiver. 

Beurre de Malines. 

La Bonne Malinoise. 

Milanaise Cuvelier. 

Etourneau. 
Waterloo. 

Due de Brabant. 

Desiree Van Mons. 

Fondante Charneuse. 

Fondante des Char* 
neuse. 

Beurre Charneuse. 

Mil de Waterloo. 

Jamin. 

Belle Excellente. 

Yat. 
Yutte. 

Zepbyrin Gregolre. 
Zephyrin Louis Gregoirc 



INDEX 



PAGE 

Analysis of Pear- wood, Fruit, &c. . 69 

Additional List 226 

Andrews 226 

Ananas d'Ete 227 

Budding 79 

Bartlett 191 

Belle Epine Dumas 193 

Belle Lucrative 194 

Bloodgood 196 

Buffam 197 

Beurre d'Anj.ou 208 

Beurre Superfin 209 

Beurre Diel 210 

Beurre Gris d'Hiver Nouveau 228 

Beurre St. Nicholas 229 

Beurre d'Aremberg 230 

Beurre d'Amalis 231 

Beurre Bosc 232 

Beurre Langelier 233 

Beurre Capiamont 234 

Beurre Clairgeau 234 

Beurre Gifford 235 

Beurre Brown 238 

Beurre Hardy 238 

Barry on Eipening "Winter Pears.. . 268 

Blight Insect 176 

Blight, Winter, or Frozen-Sap 173 

Cause of. 173 

Kemedy and Means of Prevent 

ing 174 

Signs of Approach 175 

Blight, Leaf 176 

Cause of 177 

Immunity of Improved Varie- 
ties from 177 

Compost 31 

Cultivation of the Pear Orchard. ... 112 
Causes of Failure of Nursery Trees . 89 
Causes of Failure of Pear on Quince 123 

Caterpillar Cankerworm, &c 186 

Means of Destroying 187 

Conditions which affect the Quality 

of Pears... 188 

Columbia 198 

Church 236 



PAGE 

Coloring and Eipening of Summer 

and Autumn Pears. 264 

Mr. Gordon's Method of 264 

Catalogue of Native Varieties 

OF Excellence 271 

Catalogue, General, of Native 

Varieties 272 

Catalogue of Foreign Varieties. 276 

Dedication iii 

Draining 18 

Digging Holes 33 

Digging Trees 34 

Double Working 144 

Varieties for 146 

Doyenne Bossouch 200 

Dearborn's Seedling 287 

Delices d'Hardenpont 238 

Dix 239 

Doyenne SieuUe 240 

Duchesse d'Angouleme 212 

Doyenne d'Alencon 241 

Easter Beurre 214 

Espalier Trees 184 

Forms of Training 162 

Fruit-Eooms 267 

Mr. ScnooLEY's 268 

Engraving of do 269 

Frederick of Wirtemberg 242 

Fulton 243 

Flemish Beauty 201 

Fruit Spurs and Treatment 161 

Grafting by Approach to improve 

Shape 156 

Graft, Influence of, on Longevity. . . 72 

Grafting, Methods of 74 

Cleft 76 

Whip 71 

Crown 78 

Grafting Large Trees 121 

Glout Morceau 216 

Golden Beurre 244 

Gray Doyenne. 245 

Gordon, Mr., Method of Eipening 

Pear 264 

Gathering Pears 262 



( 285 ) 



286 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Hybridizing 55 

Howel 246 

Heeling in 103 

Introduction 13 

Invigoratins: Old Trees 120 

Insect Blight 176 

Improved Varieties, immunity from 

Leaf-blight 177 

Leaf-blight of Seedlings 53 

Lawrence 202 

Louise Bonne de Jersey 218 

Manure for Pear Trees 27 

Manuring 26 

Manures for Nursery Stocks 67 

Special do. for Pear Trees 117 

Mulching 114 

Cropping for do 116 

Moore, A. O., Article on Scale In- 
sect 179 

MooKE A. O., Article on Pear Slug. . 182 

Madeleine 247 

Marie Louise 248 

Markkting Pears 263 

Napoleon .. 249 

Nouveau Poiteau 250 

Onondaga 251 

Oswego Bcurre 252 

Old Trees, Invigorating 120 

Part 1 17 

Part II 45 

Part III 86 

Part IV 122 

PartV 147 

Part VI 173 

Part VII 178 

Part VIII ISS 

Part IX 261 

Preface v 

Preparation of the Soil 17 

Plowing and Cropping the Ground. 20 

Propagation by Layers and Cuttings 59 

Planting Seed 48 

Planting Stocks 65 

Cost of 67 

Preparation of Stocks for Planting. . 70 

Planting Trees 104 

Proper Age for 90 

Depth of 110 

Plan of Arranging Pear Orchard. . 106 
Pruning and Eoot-pruning before 

Planting 97 

Pyramidal Shape, Advantage of 147 

Pruning to form Pyramids 150 

Pruning to a Bud 157 

Pruning, Kules for 166 

Season 168 

Pruning Eoots, Effect of, on Shape, 

&c 168 

Mr. Rivers on do 168 

Parsonage 253 

Paradise" d'Automne 254 

Passe Colraar 254 

Pear Slug 182 

Quince Stocks 60 

PropagatioH of 61 



I Quince Stocks, oflice of 1 22 

j Quince, Causes of Failure of Pear on 123 

Quince-stock, Advantages of 124 

Berckmans' L. E., Article on... 1&4 

Wilder, M. P., do 130 

Do. do 132 

BriST, R. do 136 

Hovey, C. do 137 

Rules for growing Pear on 138 

Rooting of the Pear above 139 

How to produce it 143 

Quenouille Training 164 

Qualities now required for Market 

Pears 189 

Removing the Wood «f Old Dwarfs. 158 
Root-prunin£j, «fec.. Effect on Shape 

and Fruiting 168 

Rivers', Mr., Remarks on do. . . 170 

Rostiezer 255 

Ripening Winter Pears 265 

Difficulty of 266 

Laws governing, do 265 

Rooting of the Pear 96 

Replanting the Pear to form Fibrous 

Roots 102 

Scolytns pyri 178 

Scale Insect 178 

Washes to destroy,. 179 

A. O. Moore's ArticUj on 179 

Slug, Pear 182 

A. O. Moore's Article on 183 

Season for Removing and Planting 

Trees T 94 

Sheldon 256 

Soldat Laboureur 257 

St. Michael Archange 258 

Seckel 204 

Soils affecting the Quality of Pears.. 261 

Summer Pinching 159 

Season for Pruning 168 

Soils for the Pear 38 

Seedlings 45 

Leaf-blight of 57 

New Varieties of 51 

Cultivation of 50 

Van Mons' Theory of Improve- 
ment 52 

Indications of good Varieties 53 

Seed-planting 48 

Thinning Fruit 261 

Terms relating to Quality 188 

Trenching 21 

Costof 23 

Transporting 43 

Urbaniste 223 

Van Mons' Theory of Improving 

Seedlings 52 

Vicar of Winkfield 220 

Withered Trees, Treatment of. 103 

Winter Pears, Ripening of 265 

Difficulty of 266 

Laws Governing do 265 

Winter Nelis 205 

White Doyenne 224 



3477 



